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Not exactly on Bro-Level yet so we have the requisite hands to ourself pose.

Not exactly on Bro-Level yet so we have the requisite hands to ourself pose.

7 Questions with Andrés Duany

September 27, 2015

Can you believe it has been 6 months since Andrés Duany sent shock-waves through the Charleston community?

During the week of March 9th, 2015 there was a series of meetings and lectures in which Duany shared his observations on the past, present and future of the Holy City’s Architecture and Urban Design.  His firm Duany Plater-Zyberk & Company had been hired by the City of Charleston and the Historic Charleston Foundation to study the city's Board of Architectural Review (B.A.R.) and to determine why our new architecture is not better.

Duany really laid into everyone involved: architects, preservationists, nimbys, the BAR, the Clemson Architecture Center, the fire marshal and even our beloved Mayor.

It was brutal.

And very entertaining.

The following week I summarized the events in the blog The Week of Duany.  At the very least, Duany’s trip to the lowcountry did wonders for my then infantile blog.  I had a tremendous amount of traffic due to that blog and it still remains the most visited page.

It was a sign of how important design is to the Charleston community.  

Well Mr. Duany returned to Charleston last week.  He was in town to present the DPZ report: Revised B.A.R. Process for New Construction and Large Projects

Duany presented the report to a packed house at the Sotille Theatre Thursday, September 24th. It was a special meeting of the Charleston Planning Commission.  I was pretty amped up and excited to see the next round of fireworks.  I mean, who was he going to make fun of next?

Apparently nobody.  Duany was on his best behavior.  The report was presented.  Questions were asked and it was extremely civil.

Boring!

Oh well.  He must have been given direction to keep it clean and quick.

Luckily I was able to sit down with Duany the next morning for a chat over breakfast.  I wanted to hear some additional information on the report and insight on his thoughts for the future of Charleston.

Enjoy!

This is not one of the questions, but I wanted to include it because this is a guy that is very quick to hand out insults.  And on this particular occasion:

Andres Paid Me a Compliment!

SR:  I’d like to ask you some questions about the report.

AD:  Why are you so interested?

SR:  It will be something that affects the kind of work I do.  Also, the blog that I write is a resource for other architects and also for my clients. 

AD:  By the way, the blog you wrote was so incredibly accurate.  It was very impressive.

SR:  Thank you.  I was just writing very quickly!

 

1.  The 3 Most Things from the Report

SR:  If there were one thing that the city were to adopt from the report, what would it be?

AD:  I think it’s that those who come in with modern architecture should be supported.  The critique should make their modern architecture better.  And those that come in with a traditional architecture should get a sympathetic critique that makes the traditional architecture better. 

What is happening is that you are getting a homogenization.  And it's neither one or the other.  So it tends to lack the character of the city.

The 2nd most important thing is that the architects here should work together to develop an architecture of Charleston.  The way for example that Austin Texas did.

The 3rd thing is that you need an architecture school from Charleston.  That is out of Charleston.  That exports.  The way that Barcelona exports the architecture of Barcelona.  Like the way that Austin exports the architecture of Austin.  Charleston is ready to export its architecture.  Yes of course you needed 2-300 years of importation.  But Charleston is now mature enough to export what it knows.

Yet it’s still importing.  It’s importing architecture and urbanism from other places.

By the way, I don’t care about architects being imported.  It is the architecture.

And the architects are not playing together to develop an architecture.

SR:  It is interesting that you say that.  It is very common to hear architects say:  "Hey, we can’t do that....it looks too much like those other guys!"  And at the BAR recently, the city architect criticized that “a lot of the new buildings are starting to look alike”

That should be perceived as a good thing!  (laughs)

AD:  That’s the best part of Charleston is things that are starting to look alike. 

SR That’s the irony.  Like the single house for example.

AD:  Yes and stylistically.  Now the expectation is that every building must be exceptional so you get a hodgepodge.

 

2.  The Evil Zoning Envelope!

SR:  Recently phrases like density and the zoning envelope have become bad words.  How do we overcome that?

AD:  Another thing is you need a new zoning code.  The zoning code has nothing to do with the city.

SR:  There are so many different zoning districts, for them to retroactively change them seems impossible.  Recently I asked Jacob Lindsey about the likelihood of the existing height districts being rewritten as a story based system.  He answered, that to retroactively change all of the codes would be a daunting task.  And would be politically fraught.

AD:  Well that’s what we do.  I’m not looking for work.  I’m certainly not trying to turn Charleston into a work site.  But that's absolutely doable.  Every city is doing that .  You can’t live with a 1960’s ordinance.  Especially a city like this.

 

3.  Other Cities

SR:  Speaking of other cities.  What are other examples of cities tackling this issue?

AD:  Miami just made a new code.

SR:  What were some of the shortcomings of Miami’s code? 

AD:  Same as yours.  There are dozens and dozens of other cities that have rewritten their codes to fit the character of their city..  New Orleans has just written a new code.  It is a city just as good and just as complex as yours.

 

4.  The Activation of the Nimby

SR:  I suspect that a lot of this supposed crisis we are in has a lot to do with traffic?

AD:  The crisis of angry neighbors and so forth?

SR:  Yeah that…and the architecture.  I mean there has been mediocre architecture around for a long time.  Why is it now so critical?

AD:  It is the activation of the NIMBY.  It is the empowering of the people.  That is new.

SR:  We propose all different types of buildings.  Projects that would appear to be perfectly harmless.   Yet 30 people will come out in opposition.  Or more.

There is a café and event space being planned for Hampton Park.  A big park north of here…actually an Olmsted Park.  It seems great to me, yet people talked as if their world’s were going to end.  Because their park would be suddenly commercialized.  There is serious opposition.

It’s almost comical.

AD:  Well a lot of people making a living on that.  I mean I could make a living getting elemental things permitted like that.  But I refuse to.  It’s a toxic kind of symbiotic relationship between trouble and the people who can maneuver you through the trouble.  A lot of people making a lot of money of that.  Lawyers, planning consultants, architects.

 

5.  Recommendations For Charleston's Suburbs

SR:  I know that you were not hired to look outside of the city.  But I think that our lack of planning in the suburbs is more troublesome than our supposed crisis downtown.  Do you have any recommendations for how we can better plan for our suburbs?

AD:  Right now the good stuff is illegal.  The suburban sprawl is (legal).  I'On had to go all the way to the state supreme court.  It was legal to build suburban sprawl.  You need to equalize it.  You need to make it possible for developers to do TND (Traditional Neighborhood Development). 

SR:  The current densities aren’t allowed?

AD:  The current anything isn’t allowed.

So for people to do the right thing, they need to do a lot of variances.  They need a lot of money and a they need a lot of courage.

SR:  It’s easier to do the wrong thing (sprawl)?.

AD: Oh..it’s much, much easier!

 

6.  Ask Duany

SR:  One of the funny things that has happened since you were here, 6 months ago is that all different types of people are saying things like: "Duany said this, Duany said that."  And recently the folks from the city have been referring to you as the consultant.  Even my neighbor across the street said something about that Duany Guy.  It’s really funny.  What do you think about that?

AD:     I should have a really big session called ‘Ask Duany’?  I always tell the truth.

Like forget about killing gentrification.  You’ll never do it.

 

7.  New Charleston Architecture School

SR:  This Charleston design school.  That is very intriguing.  What is it?  Is it an actual building?  Is it an accredited class?

AD:  It’s happening.  It’ll grow.  Led by……(hesitated then didn’t say)  There is a terrific need for a place like this to have an architecture school.  Isn’t this a state with just one architecture school?

SR:  Yes, Clemson.  And then there’s SCAD.

AD:  That’s ridiculous.  There is no competition.  No other state just has one school, I believe.  Florida has like 10 or 12.

SR:  So your goal or vision is an actual accredited university program?

AD:  That’s 10 years out.  Now it is starting a program.  It is just getting started.

I don’t think accreditation and licensure is important.   I think there is a new profession that is necessary.  That is a profession of generalists.  I take everyone that comes into my office and teach them to be generalists.  I have to teach them codes.  I have to teach them to think like developers.  I have to teach them an agility of design that is not just about you.  That design is political.

Aesthetics is a political act.  Just like designing a poster.   It is not a personal act.  Nobody cares.  Unless you are one of a dozen architects in the world, nobody wants your brand.  It is political.

I think it is very important to know about infrastructure.  You have to know about lighting.  You don’t have to know about leather, but you have to know about lighting.  You have to know about acoustics.  Just a little bit.  You have to know about how mullions can make a building look great, instead of just a box.  You have to know just enough classicism to get the moldings right.   Because it is unforgiving if you don’t.  Just a little.  Or at least know where to look it up.

You have to learn how to look it up.

SR:  So you don’t think architects are already generalists?

AD:  No, they are not.  It is the opposite.  And I really resent it.  It used to be that I could re-educate people.  But now I don’t have the means to do it.  I don’t have the slack.  The fees are too low.

So I have to hire people from other offices that are like mine.

 

That wraps up my interview with Andrés Duany.  

Thanks to Andrés for his time and insight.  I am eager to see what happens with the report. Hopefully the City can get it quickly passed and we can start incorporating the new processes.

Oh..and how about that report?  I have read through the report and have boiled it down to:

The 5 Things You Need to Know

Cheers,

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Hello, my name is Steve Ramos.  This site is about what it's like to be a young architect in Charleston, South Carolina.  In 10 years, I will write about what it is like to be a middle-age architect. 

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Good morning from Elliott Street!  This handsome devil is a newish building that has some great brick details.  How about some brick terminology?  At the heads of the windows and doors at the 2nd and 3rd floor you will see what is called a ‘Jack Arch’ or some call it a ‘Flat Arch.’. Rather than a typical round arch the jack arch angles the bricks to create a keystone effect in which it can actually support the wall above.  Look up at the top of the building and you will see banding.  This banding is created by gradually stepping out the brick like a game of jenga.  This stepping of the brick is called corbelling or one may say brick corbels.  One last 🧱 term, this brownish colored brick is referred to as Savannah Grey and is very common in the Low-country.  And there you have it folks.  #themoreyouknow🌈
Good morning from Elliott Street! This handsome devil is a newish building that has some great brick details. How about some brick terminology? At the heads of the windows and doors at the 2nd and 3rd floor you will see what is called a ‘Jack Arch’ or some call it a ‘Flat Arch.’. Rather than a typical round arch the jack arch angles the bricks to create a keystone effect in which it can actually support the wall above. Look up at the top of the building and you will see banding. This banding is created by gradually stepping out the brick like a game of jenga. This stepping of the brick is called corbelling or one may say brick corbels. One last 🧱 term, this brownish colored brick is referred to as Savannah Grey and is very common in the Low-country. And there you have it folks. #themoreyouknow🌈
Good morning from South of Broad!  Another photo where I can't remember the street.  I believe it was either Church or State?  #punny  This #singlehouseoftheday has got something that is very rare in Charleston.......a front yard!  One of the biggest differences between urban design and suburban design is that in the city, the buildings are right up on the street, whereas in the burbs the buildings are set back from the street.  This is certainly the case in Charleston.  It is one of the things that makes are streets so beautiful.  The buildings line up like soldiers (soldier buildings we call um) and form an urban wall that makes the street feel like a room.  Now, occasionally there is a home that bucks the system and has a front yard like this guy.  And good for them! Yards are awesome.  When I am on my urban safaris I am often enamored by the landscaping and hardscaping of these little yards and driveways.  Buildings are cool...but so are gardens and even driveways if done well.  In fact, when I give folks tours South of Broad I find them most amazed with the driveways and mini-gardens.  #gardensarecool
Good morning from South of Broad! Another photo where I can't remember the street. I believe it was either Church or State? #punny This #singlehouseoftheday has got something that is very rare in Charleston.......a front yard! One of the biggest differences between urban design and suburban design is that in the city, the buildings are right up on the street, whereas in the burbs the buildings are set back from the street. This is certainly the case in Charleston. It is one of the things that makes are streets so beautiful. The buildings line up like soldiers (soldier buildings we call um) and form an urban wall that makes the street feel like a room. Now, occasionally there is a home that bucks the system and has a front yard like this guy. And good for them! Yards are awesome. When I am on my urban safaris I am often enamored by the landscaping and hardscaping of these little yards and driveways. Buildings are cool...but so are gardens and even driveways if done well. In fact, when I give folks tours South of Broad I find them most amazed with the driveways and mini-gardens. #gardensarecool
Good morning from King Street!  You know that it is @sewechs weekend when you see a fella carving a wood duck in front of the @audubonsociety gallery.  Head over to Marion Square this weekend to see all the cool wildlife and neat things.  And if you are like us 8 years ago, walk by @mdumasandsons and accidentally buy one of the puppies in the window from @charlestonanimalsociety  Best accident that ever happened.  Cheers and have a great weekend !!!! #dailydoseofcharleston #sewe
Good morning from King Street! You know that it is @sewechs weekend when you see a fella carving a wood duck in front of the @audubonsociety gallery. Head over to Marion Square this weekend to see all the cool wildlife and neat things. And if you are like us 8 years ago, walk by @mdumasandsons and accidentally buy one of the puppies in the window from @charlestonanimalsociety Best accident that ever happened. Cheers and have a great weekend !!!! #dailydoseofcharleston #sewe
Good morning from State and Chalmers!  This building is one of my favs.  It does a lot of things right but it it is also imperfect and quirky.  The proportion of the facade is 💯 Tall and skinny just looks good.  The aspect ratio of the facade is 2 to 1, which would be the height to width.  It has great balance, aka symmetry.  Each floor has a different window pattern which adds interest.  The stucco has that patina look that we all go gaga over.  Some of the quirks:  the 2nd floor window looks like it may have been a balcony at some point.  The front door seems too small and should be taller.  The proportion of the top window is wonky.  The banding at the 3rd floor line almost seems industrial.  But it still works.  It has character.  What do folks think?  #dailydoseofcharleston
Good morning from State and Chalmers! This building is one of my favs. It does a lot of things right but it it is also imperfect and quirky. The proportion of the facade is 💯 Tall and skinny just looks good. The aspect ratio of the facade is 2 to 1, which would be the height to width. It has great balance, aka symmetry. Each floor has a different window pattern which adds interest. The stucco has that patina look that we all go gaga over. Some of the quirks: the 2nd floor window looks like it may have been a balcony at some point. The front door seems too small and should be taller. The proportion of the top window is wonky. The banding at the 3rd floor line almost seems industrial. But it still works. It has character. What do folks think? #dailydoseofcharleston
Good morning from Charleston!  Ya know.....I don’t recall where I snapped this photo.  But I do recall loving this view.  Happy Valentine’s Day Y’all!  #singlehouseoftheday
Good morning from Charleston! Ya know.....I don’t recall where I snapped this photo. But I do recall loving this view. Happy Valentine’s Day Y’all! #singlehouseoftheday
Good morning from Broad Street!  This little guy is known as ‘Fast and French.’. The longer and much harder to pronounce name is Gaulart and Maticlet French Cafe.  I hadn’t stopped to look at this building before until last night when  I was down here with my @cpad12bull students.  About 20 minutes later we got caught in a crazy rain storm 😜 🌧..........but back to the building.  I am not a master of architectural styles but I might call this Greek Revival.  The pilasters on the corners and pediment look at the gable recalls a Greek Temple.  Thoughts?  One thing I can decipher is the form of the Charleston Single House.  If you look to the left you see a sliver of the  building that looks like it could have been a piazza (side porch). Maybe it was a piazza that was filled in at some point?  Because of that I am going to call it the #singlehouseoftheday
Good morning from Broad Street! This little guy is known as ‘Fast and French.’. The longer and much harder to pronounce name is Gaulart and Maticlet French Cafe. I hadn’t stopped to look at this building before until last night when I was down here with my @cpad12bull students. About 20 minutes later we got caught in a crazy rain storm 😜 🌧..........but back to the building. I am not a master of architectural styles but I might call this Greek Revival. The pilasters on the corners and pediment look at the gable recalls a Greek Temple. Thoughts? One thing I can decipher is the form of the Charleston Single House. If you look to the left you see a sliver of the building that looks like it could have been a piazza (side porch). Maybe it was a piazza that was filled in at some point? Because of that I am going to call it the #singlehouseoftheday
Good morning from Marion Square and the Hotel Bennett!  This brand new hotel is all everyone is talking about.  My favorite part of the exterior is this little bit here.  I love the large windows and especially love that they have this exterior seating area.  It is a great way to engage with Marion Square.  It reminds me of the great piazzas in Italy where the surrounding sidewalk cafes spill out into the space.  The roof deck at the top of the photo is another great way to connect.  I have not been inside yet.  Have you? #dailydoseofcharleston
Good morning from Marion Square and the Hotel Bennett! This brand new hotel is all everyone is talking about. My favorite part of the exterior is this little bit here. I love the large windows and especially love that they have this exterior seating area. It is a great way to engage with Marion Square. It reminds me of the great piazzas in Italy where the surrounding sidewalk cafes spill out into the space. The roof deck at the top of the photo is another great way to connect. I have not been inside yet. Have you? #dailydoseofcharleston
Good morning from King Street!  These are a couple pix from yesterday’s Second Sunday on King.  For those not familiar with Second Sunday’s, from 1-5pm, the city closes King Street from cars leaving it as a pedestrian paradise.  If someone were to ask me about Charleston’s best public space, I would say King Street.  A good urban street should feel like an outdoor room and that is definitely the case with King Street.  Question: should they close King Street off from cars more than just one Sunday per month?  Twice a month?  Four times?  Every day?  #dailydoseofcharleston
Good morning from King Street! These are a couple pix from yesterday’s Second Sunday on King. For those not familiar with Second Sunday’s, from 1-5pm, the city closes King Street from cars leaving it as a pedestrian paradise. If someone were to ask me about Charleston’s best public space, I would say King Street. A good urban street should feel like an outdoor room and that is definitely the case with King Street. Question: should they close King Street off from cars more than just one Sunday per month? Twice a month? Four times? Every day? #dailydoseofcharleston
Good morning from Archdale Street!  This #singlehouseoftheday is a big boy!  One of the tallest Charleston Single Houses you will find at 4 1/2 stories.  In Charleston we refer to a habitable attic as a 1/2 story.  Although it is hard to see from this angle there is a hip roof up there and we can guess it is habitable from the dormer window.  For scale purposes  look at the 2-story single house to the right.  This exhibits the versatility of the single house in that it can be scaled up or down.  This house has something that is now considered taboo.....can you guess?.........The piazza (side porch) has been filled in on floors 2 and 3.  Nowadays, the Board of Architectural Review (BAR) will not let folks infill their piazzas.  Although this infill looks pretty good, this sort of thing runs contrary to the preservation mantra we embrace in the Holy City.  The piazza is the most defining feature of the Single House therefore it is critical that we save these gems. #dailydoseofcharleston
Good morning from Archdale Street! This #singlehouseoftheday is a big boy! One of the tallest Charleston Single Houses you will find at 4 1/2 stories. In Charleston we refer to a habitable attic as a 1/2 story. Although it is hard to see from this angle there is a hip roof up there and we can guess it is habitable from the dormer window. For scale purposes look at the 2-story single house to the right. This exhibits the versatility of the single house in that it can be scaled up or down. This house has something that is now considered taboo.....can you guess?.........The piazza (side porch) has been filled in on floors 2 and 3. Nowadays, the Board of Architectural Review (BAR) will not let folks infill their piazzas. Although this infill looks pretty good, this sort of thing runs contrary to the preservation mantra we embrace in the Holy City. The piazza is the most defining feature of the Single House therefore it is critical that we save these gems. #dailydoseofcharleston
Good morning from Tradd Street!  Yesterday was a white house with a red door. Today is a white house with a pink door.  Or is it salmon?  Or Coral?  Whatever it is, it works.  You may be thinking, is this a Charleston Single House?  It does have a Piazza (side porch). But a single house is called a single house because it is a single room wide.  I have not been in this house but it is clearly more than a single room wide.  Likely 2.  Is it a double house?  Double houses typically are 2 rooms wide plus a hall that runs down the middle.  A double house would be 5 windows wide on the facade.  So not a double house.  So what is it?  #dailydoseofcharleston
Good morning from Tradd Street! Yesterday was a white house with a red door. Today is a white house with a pink door. Or is it salmon? Or Coral? Whatever it is, it works. You may be thinking, is this a Charleston Single House? It does have a Piazza (side porch). But a single house is called a single house because it is a single room wide. I have not been in this house but it is clearly more than a single room wide. Likely 2. Is it a double house? Double houses typically are 2 rooms wide plus a hall that runs down the middle. A double house would be 5 windows wide on the facade. So not a double house. So what is it? #dailydoseofcharleston

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