In Search of a Defining Café Building
— by Mike Bowermaster — 22 January 2010 — 7 comments below »
The cafe building was presented without alternative conceptual designs and without historical, railroad, local, or cafe precedents. The following paragraphs show three sources of inspiration to hopefully help guide the design.
Small train stations can be little historic gems.
Historic train stations in small towns were buildings of a petite size appropriate for the cafe building. The large overhanging eaves, exposed rafter tails, and exaggerated knee braces created a shelter from the elements scaled to a human size. This would work well for the bus shelter on Seaside Circle.
Industrial basilica forms created by historic architecture of the area.
Locally, the former dynamite factory buildings on the site had a very unique form of an industrial basilica. The simple gabled roofs were capped with a clerestory giving the overall building a very distinct silhouette. The striking skyline created by these old structures is a historic feature worth holding on to.
Memorable, unique, and cool cafe architecture in Eureka, Calif.
Coffee houses and cafes have a strong architectural history as well. In addition to this, the cafe building is on one of the most prominent and visible corners of the waterfront, and begs to be architecturally very cool. How about a building that is both visibly a coffee house and a signature piece of architecture?
Detached bathrooms in an awkwardly central location.
In closing, an important critique of the current layout of the transit plaza and cafe building is that the bathrooms have been celebrated as a standalone structure in a central location. These glorified “outhouses” are visible from everywhere in the transit plaza. Instead, they should be integrated and hidden into the back of the cafe building.
I favor the design that has the gabled roof with the raised clearstory. This would be a great representation of the industrial history of the Hercules Powder Company. At one time, a few years ago, it was hoped by many that the old generator plant on the point would be left standing and remodeled. It had this same roof design. I heard speculations of it being a restaurant or pub. Of course it was probably an impossible or impractical restoration. Solar panels could be incorporated into the roof even with the raised lites. The raised clerestory from the inside would offer extra light and openness. For even more openness the walls could incorporate lots of glass supported by steel beams with corners of arched brick. This industrial design would certainly meet the reguirements established in the Waterfront Initiative Master Plan and also share the glass and frame design of the train platform.
Thanks for the pictures and perspective. I would like to see more options presented by the architect and more discussion from the community on the final design.
I tend to think the restrooms should be visible from everywhere. Hiding the restrooms out of sight means less security and more opportunity for vandals.
Lisa Simmons
Unable to attend Monday’s meeting. Would opine that all designs show the solar panels in place. They will make a huge visual impact on any building style that will be chosen. Showing the building with a unique roof treatment and then swapping out for one with standard solar panels yields a complete different feel for the structure.
Prefer to have the restrooms incorporated into the building structure with egress through the cafe and from outside of the building to accommodate passengers when the cafe is closed.
My father worked for the railroad his whole life. As children we always used this mode of transportation. The pictures of the old train stations brought back very fond memories. Would love to see if some of the styles shown could be incorporated into the building. The large over hanging roof line would serve the public well as they wait for their rides to come at the adjacent pick/drop off site.
Good luck on the discussions.
Hi, A very interesting architectural tour!!!!
This is a good analysis. I hope that you will present it at a future Planning Commission meeting.
I completeley agree with your observations and suggestions MIke. I would love it if the cafe was very reminescent in style to an old train shed. I don’t think this approach would distract in any way from the main train platform building. I would also like to see the restrooms relocated to a less prominent place.
Thanks!
Dave
It seems a very reasonable, and architecturally easy job, to include the restrooms at the end of the Cafe Building. Stand alone looks funky and out of place. I also liked Mike’s alternative design drawing for the cafe. It’s not a lot different from the architect’s drawings, but has more “style” – is more interesting. It is the building that will have the most presence on the property, so I think it’s worth putting some extra work and classy design into