Just some things I noticed on my walk tonight. The Lansing Brewery murals are looking great.
It looks like they're building a concrete slab on the corner of Kalamazoo and Cedar in the Marketplace Apartments lot. Looks like it could be a permanent sign going up.
And finally, the old Capital City Books Building is almost done being converted into a Domino's. Looks well decorated and quite nice. It certainly make The Runway in the Knapps Center look much less lonely on that street.
The Michigan Avenue mural project launched a crowdfunding campaign. A bit more to it than I thought. The project is calling for revised green space under the bridge and multi-colored lights in addition to four murals.
I have been thinking about this overpass and the Michigan Ave bridge for a long time, I really like the plans the have for the area and have chipped in. I was wondering one thing about the drawing the seem to depict a blue and gold color scheme, unless it is to honor the Eastern High Quakers, I think they may want to choose another set of colors, maybe not green and white but not blue and gold. The Michigan Ave bridge downtown is a brutal-est remnant of the North Washington Sq. mall which was all cast textured cement. It was rebuilt after the mall and was meant to match. The mall was a failure as a place kind of crazy when you look at it from today no one ever used it there were no more shops and or reason to go there. The bridge was planned to be more ornate with flagpoles and plantings at each end. It would seem that they are not going to replace the siding so why not put big flag poles along both sides with big nice plantings on each end. Maybe even have flower boxes all along the walls that could have vines that fill in the textured cement. Light up the underside of the bridge with lights that frame the river passing under. Get rid of old signage from the seventies it look really bad. It would be cool if they under lit all the downtown bridges, like in Amsterdam. It would be nice if they made the walk over 496 on S Washington a nice place to walk instead of being exposed to the elements hot sun cars rushing by below, it kind of makes me have vertigo on a hot day. some sort of fencing maybe with vines growing that would arch over the side walk to provide shade. Maybe a row of tree in planters in the unused lanes on each side. It would be great if all the bridges of 496 were flower bridges people zooming by might want to stop and see what is going on in Lansing.I think trees trees trees and flower flowers and more flowers would add a great deal of interest in our urban forest and garden were we work and live. Poeple would come just to see the trees and flowers.
In the 60's we would wait for my Dad to get off work at REO we would wait next to the Quality Dairy plant there was not a store there then, I could be wrong but I think the mural is on one of their buildings, it is QD's employee parking lot in front by the tracks. I live in REO town and it would be great to have a store here.
In response to your earlier statement gbinlansing, I would love for more landscaping in the area but I wish Lansing would also maintain some of the landscaping it already has. The rivertrail by the City Market and along Accident Fund is an absolute mess. I think the weeds outnumber the plants. The worst is right before the Shiawasee bridge on the rivertrail where they're about 5 ft. tall.
I feel like they need to address this now more than ever with all these new apartments going up.
I don't really care for the way they designed the the waterfront by City Market, and if you can mistake their landscaping for unmaintained, overgrown weeds, many others will also. It's not bad but they could of done better, I'd of preferred they kept the trail closer to the river, like on the Accident Fund side.
Comments
It looks like they're building a concrete slab on the corner of Kalamazoo and Cedar in the Marketplace Apartments lot. Looks like it could be a permanent sign going up.
And finally, the old Capital City Books Building is almost done being converted into a Domino's. Looks well decorated and quite nice. It certainly make The Runway in the Knapps Center look much less lonely on that street.
Here's some images from the page:
I feel like they need to address this now more than ever with all these new apartments going up.