On Architecture


Final act: Casteen dedicates Bavaro Hall Published on Jul 16th, 2010 21 comments UVA president John Casteen dedicates his final building. PHOTO BY DAVE MCNAIR In perhaps his last public appearance as president of UVA, John Casteen today dedicated Bavaro Hall, the long-awaited $...
Staunton landmark remains in limbo Published on Jul 14th, 2010 1 comments Staunton's an architecturally flavorful town, as seen from the plush Stonewall Jackson Hotel. STITCHED FILE PHOTO BY HAWES SPENCER One of Staunton's landmarks, the train track-crossing pedestrian...
Retrofitting? LEAP on these rebates, cash incentives Published on Jul 13th, 2010 31 comments Your house may never be as energy efficient as this ecoMOD house on Cherry Avenue, but LEAP still wants to help. FILE PHOTO BY DAVE MCNAIR On July 7 the Local Energy Alliance Program (LEAP), an...
Timely disposal: City dumps RSWA for Van der Linde Published on Jun 30th, 2010 9 comments Van der Linde's recycling facility(surrounding the holding pond) is permitted to handle 1,000 tons of trash a day. The RSWA's Ivy transfer station: 150 tons a day PHOTO BY SKIP DEGAN Last year, our...
Eco-apts: Ground broken on city's first 'green' apartment building Published on Jun 14th, 2010 17 comments Developers Jim and Cynthia Stultz get mean in their efforts to go green, taking the first whacks at the old apartment building they own(ed) on 14th Street. PHOTO COURTESY MARTIN HORN INC. Demolition...
80K headache: Broken, dying, and disorderly days for McGuffey Park Published on Jun 6th, 2010 48 comments McGuffey Park's slide and sandbox area has already deteriorated beyond repair. It will be removed as part of an $80,000 upgrade. PHOTO BY DAVE MCNAIR Back in 2007, sleepy little McGuffey Park near...
Cradles will fall: W&L deck collapse highlights dangers Published on May 21st, 2010 10 comments Last weekend, a party at Washington & Lee University ended in disaster. VIDEO FROM WSET-TV, LYNCHBURG What Washington & Lee University officials are calling a “close call” should be a wake...
Fallen palace: Swannanoa still stunning, despite disrepair Published on May 18th, 2010 11 comments The mansion in its heyday. PHOTO BY R.L.HISERMAN The Hook recently had a chance to tour Swannanoa, the sumptuous but decaying 1912 Italianate palace on Afton Mountain, which current owner James F. “...
The Rotunda's black socks Published on May 18th, 2010 16 comments Some recent visitors to the Rotunda thought the tops of the capitals were draped in mourning for slain student Yeardley Love. PHOTO BY HAWES SPENCER Some may have thought the Rotunda was in mourning...
Persevering preservationists: Cyclorama Building gets a reprieve Published on May 12th, 2010 11 comments For ten years, French and others have sought to save the Cyclorama Center. PHOTO BY DON WILES A decade ago, Christine Madrid French, a one-woman modern architecture-saving dervish, landed on the...
Greek revival: UVA's amphitheatre gets historic touch Published on Apr 27th, 2010 5 comments Work commences on the McIntire Amphitheatre's gravel walkway. PHOTO BY DAN ADDISON The University of Virginia’s iconic McIntire Amphitheatre, the 1,500-seat concrete neoclassical Greek theater space...
ecoMOD Squad: When sustainable gets obtainable? Published on Apr 19th, 2010 28 comments Charlottesville Habitat for Humanity executive director Dan Rosensweig and Environment Virginia's J.R. Tolbert hope ecoMOD4 on Elliot Avenue will lead to more affordable, yet green, home building....
On 14th Street: Boutique 'Alcove' hotel gets Council approval Published on Apr 13th, 2010 11 comments The Alcove apartments on 14th Street could become Charlottesville first boutique hotel. PHOTO BY DAVE MCNAIR Charlottesville may soon get its first boutique hotel after City Council approved rehab...
Snap: Efflorescence by the Chapel Published on Apr 2nd, 2010 1 comments The Downtown Mall is not the only place where bricks are showing a bit of springtime efflorescence. Here, the new bricks outside the UVA Chapel, photographed on March 31, show the same phenomenon of...
Pavilion X shows its (new) colors Published on Apr 2nd, 2010 6 comments Pavilion X just got a new parapet and color scheme. PHOTO BY HAWES SPENCER A year ago, there was widespread concern among UVA alums about then-impending changes to the hallowed UVA Lawn, including...
Open house: Swannanoa set for summer touring Published on Apr 2nd, 2010 6 comments Warm weather offers a chance to tour some of these 52 rooms. PHOTO BY HAWES SPENCER Swannanoa, the sumptuous 1912 Italianate palace near Rockfish Gap, will welcome the general public this year...
Art-deco ditched: Mauled facade to get historic treatment Published on Mar 29th, 2010 22 comments The approved design for the faÃ?Â§ade of the former Victory Shoe store is a victory for the circa 1921 original facade. PHOTO COURTESY GALVIN ARCHITECTS The approved design for the fa§ade of the...
Tricky thing: Battle building merges with West Main Published on Mar 16th, 2010 18 comments The Battle Building will transform West Main's streetscape. Odell & Associates “Building, but not sprawling” was the headline of a recent UVA Magazine story on the school’s $308 million build-a-...
Nearing completion: And Ivy Road LTACH changes name Published on Mar 11th, 2010 7 comments The hospital nears completion on U.S. 250 West. PHOTO BY HAWES SPENCER As UVA’s newest hospital building readies for opening this spring, the facility rising alongside UVA's Northridge Medical...
Satellite situation: City targeted dishes, dish owners fire back Published on Mar 8th, 2010 26 comments Front yard clutter? City zoning inspectors ordered this Cherry Avenue resident to relocate the satellite dish. PHOTO BY DAVE MCNAIR Satellite dish in my yard Tell me more, tell me more Who's the...
UVA Arts Grounds named for Casteens Published on Mar 4th, 2010 14 comments The couple at a Downtown art opening for Lincoln Perry in 2005. FILE PHOTO BY DAVE MCNAIR UVA has dubbed its ambitious $200 million Art Grounds development project the Betsy and John Casteen Arts...
Council approves 65dB noise ordinance Published on Mar 1st, 2010 30 comments Despite pleas from several music-lovers that it might kill a burgeoning part of the Charlottesville music scene, City Council voted 5-0 Monday night to create a new ordinance to ban amplified evening...
Wa$te War: Was RSWA's own trash partner to blame? Published on Mar 1st, 2010 7 comments The RSWA had "no success" fixing billing problems at the BFI/Republic transfer station–– but Van der Linde got sued. FILE PHOTO BY JEN FARIELLO For over two years, the Rivanna Solid...
Docu-demo: Lumber building gone, but not forgotten Published on Feb 23rd, 2010 17 comments The Charlottesville Lumber building in its heyday, circa 1917. PHOTO BY RUFUS HOLSINGER. FROM UVA SPECIAL COLLECTIONS LIBRARY. In December, the old Charlottesville Lumber building on Avon Street was...
Boomer boom: renovation allows couple to stay put Published on Feb 15th, 2010 11 comments Instead of moving to a retirement community, Lynne and Don Gardener had their Lexington Avenue house rebuilt for their needs. PHOTO COURTESY ABRAHAMSE & COMPANY Like so many of the estimated 78...
Thanks a million! Published on Feb 3rd, 2010 12 comments Local realtor Roger Voisinet scored a fat listing in the New York Times yesterday. In the Great Homes and Destinations section, his listing at 615 Kelly Avenue, which was still for sale back in 2008...
Fry's Spring Service Station: some forgotten history Published on Feb 1st, 2010 5 comments The side service bay of the Fry's Spring Garage in 2007... FILE PHOTO BY WILL WALKER ...and what it looks like today. PHOTO BY DAVE MCNAIR Unlike most restaurant openings, the opening of Fry's...
Amtrak lot finally to be paved? Published on Jan 29th, 2010 10 comments According to recent story in the Daily Progress, the owners of the Amtrak parking lot have promised to finally pave the dusty expanse, which a West Main neighborhood association called a “a blight on...
Breaking ground: Wood builds mammoth 'cabin on the hill' Published on Jan 25th, 2010 31 comments Wendell Wood's house on Carter's Mountain takes shape. Click on the image for a closer view. AERIAL PHOTO BY SKIP DEGAN “Why would you want to write about some house I'm building?" That was...
Filmmakers post 50 photos of Corner Parking Lot Published on Jan 22nd, 2010 0 comments It seems that there's a movie getting made about Charlottesville's infamously funky Corner Parking Lot, haven to drunks, poets, grad students, and combinations of same. While there's been no...