J. Douglas Galyon Depot(The Greensboro Project)

*How it Got Started*


The Greensboro Southern Railway Depot was built in 1927 and was one of the most remarkable passenger stations. It was coordinated by the New York architectural firm of Alfred Fellheimer and Steward Wagner. The original station contained a main waiting room with an amazing painting of the Southern Railway network during the 1920's. Currently, the station has a pedestrian tunnel, protruding from the waiting room, under the tracks, and up to the train platforms. The second floor houses local, regional, and interstate bus services.




From May 1979 to October 2005, rail passengers had to wait for the train in a small freight railroad office several miles west of downtown. Authorities from the NC Department of Transportation and the city of Greensboro started working together in 1993 on plans to return passenger rail service to the old station and enhance connections with other modes of transportation.


*The Advantages of Riding a Bus*

• Easy access for everyone(handicapped, children,etc.)



• Good schedule to meet your needs(Mon-Fri: 5:15am-11:30pm~Sat: 6am-10pm~Sun: 6am-6pm)



• Low costs($1.30)



• Takes you to your destination



• Several bus shelters in various locations(UNCG, A&T, Four Seasons, Downtown Greensboro,etc.)
• You feel some what safe with the rules and regulations that the buses have

*Where these Buses take you*

-Monday-Saturday Route(GTA Routes)

• Route 1: West Wendover Avenue


• Route 2: Four Seasons
  
• Route 3: North Elm Street


• Route 4: Benbow/Willow Rd

• Route 5: Gorrell St.

• Route 6: Summit Avenue


• Route 7: Friendly Avenue

• Route 8: Battleground Avenue

• Route 9: West Market St


• Route 10: East Market St

• Route 11: High Point Rd

• Route 12: Randleman Rd/South Elm-Eugene St

• Route 13: Martin Luther King Jr. Drive

• Route 14: Bessemer Avenue/Phillips Avenue
  
• Route 15: Yanceyville St/Brightwood School Rd

-They also have connector routes such as Lawndale, Irving Park/Starmount shuttle, High Point Rd, West Wendover, and South Town.

*What About the Community?*

-The train/bus station tells us that the community definitely needs a way of transportation. It shows us that the owners/operators of the Depot wanted to make sure that individuals who cannot afford a vehicle, have some sort of transportation to get to their destination. This also means that the community is well-built and brought up, which is probably why the Depot decided to connect the train and bus station together. A city is not going to spend money on something that is in a poor environment. The Federal Transit Administration, Federal Highway Administration, and state and city funds paid $32 million to have this building improved.

Overall Reflection(Blog #5)

After visiting several specific sites and places, I view the world in a whole new perspective. When I go to places that I never been before, I tend to pay closer attention to the details and quality of the building. Now I actually value the building of its design and material believe it or not. We visited places such as College Hill, College Park, downtown Greensboro, the J. Douglas Galyon Depot, and Battleground Park. These sites all have different, yet similar qualities. All of them have an important history and they have a special quality about them. Such as the J. Douglas Galyon Depot, who has an important history of transportation by bus and train. College Hill has a history of college students attending UNCG. Downtown Greensboro has several special stores that come and go. As far as my final project, I'm thinking about concentrating on the J. Douglas Galyon Depot because I have actually had some experience with it.

Roadway(Blog #4)

As we were riding on Wendover Avenue from I-40, I noticed that there are typically more building types than on, lets say Elm Street. Elm Street had more small restauants, coffee shops, shopping stores, and hair salons. Whereas on Wendover, there are more bigger shopping centers, drug stores, grocery stores, car dealerships, restaurants, and hotels. Some examples are CVS, Target, Walmart, IHOP, Bojangles, Subway, Honda Dealership, Infiniti Dealership, and the Hyatt. I noticed that there are car dealerships on one end of Wendover and restaurants and shopping centers on the other. This signifies the importance transportation is in this area of Greensboro. Elm Street is more of a small downtown area, whereas Wendover Ave. is more of a big shopping strip. I also noticed how Wendover has more business/job related buildings than Elm Street does.

Open Spaces(Blog #3)

The place that represented open space was Battleground Park. The openness of the park kind of gives the people of the community a sense of relief and comfort. Even though there was a battle that occurred there, it symbolizes peace. I noticed that it was not trashy and everyone was at ease. Parks that are trashy and noisy tend to be the ones that symbolize war instead of peace. The statues, for some odd reason, give you the sense that they are actually there. The excessive wind made me think of spirits flying around while looking at several statues. Not only do they signify spirit existence, but also honor. When one looks at the Vietnam Wall in Washington D.C., they automatically respect it. It's the same with statues; when you look at them, you honor or favor that person for their honorary work. The Greensboro organizers probably decided not to make a town around the park because it should be a place where one can come and relax and comfort themselves. Normally it's very busy and noisy in a town, so it wouldn't suit it.

Residential(Blog #2)

The Loewenstein's house was very different from the rest in the neighborhood. The structure of their home symbolizes their creativity and how much they value their home. They created their home this way so that others in the community will feel welcomed to come visit their home/site. Not only did they do this for their own creativity, but also to let the community know that anything is possible in this world. I mean I have never seen a house like this one and it will probably be the first and the last. Before we ate lunch, we observed how the black iron bars ran into the ground to hold the house up. These grayish, black bars symbolize the quality and the history of the household. These bars tell us that as people may come and go in that house, but it will always continue to stand.

Retail(Blog #1)

*The Friendly Center*
A few original, or should I say old, buildings that I observed at the Friendly Center were Animal Clinic, Radio Shack, Ritz Camera, Catherine's Plus Sizes, and Chuck E Cheese. These stores particularly serve to plus size women, children between 5 and 13, pet owners, and people who favor electronics. The original buildings seem to have gray and dull brick material. It looks dirty as if it hasn't been washed in years which signifies how often people visit or shop on that side of the Friendly Center. On the new side of the Friendly Center we have a few stores such as AT&T, Hallmark, The Apple, Victoria's Secret, Bath & Body Works, Pablano, and New York Company. I noticed that there are more clothing, hygienic, and electronic stores than the original side. This signifies how the generations have upgraded tremendously. Back then, they didn't have as much technology and variety of clothing as we do today.

*Four Seasons*
Other than the Friendly Center, we have Four Seasons. Four Seasons has a great variety of shopping stores. They have shoe stores, clothing stores, restaurants, cellular phone stores, toy stores, etc. Several people come from different cities to visit the Four Seasons mall which signifies its popularity and quality of the mall.

*Battleground Park*

Battleground Park is a very historical site for the community to visit. We observed a lot of information about Battleground Park and some of the famous people that were involved in it.

On the Other Side of the Tracks

Overall the observations that we observed on South Elm Street, I noticed that there were more stores(on both sides of the street) back in 1925 than now. I noticed that there are currently a lot of vacant and non existing places. I am not surprised that there were more stores back then because currently, several of those old, or so called traditional stores, are either too old-fashioned or running out of business, due to the fact that this generation does not visit these type of stores very often. For example, The Princess Mary Shop(536 South Elm Street) probably didn't last very long because as the years went on, people were probably becoming less fund of the merchandise or the store itself.

After looking at the grid, I noticed a few stores that lasted for a long period of time. These stores probably didn't run out of business possibly because of the importance or the quality of the merchandise. These stores/places included the Southern Railroad, The Salvation Army, Southside Hardware Company, Coe Grocery, Kindley's Used Office Furniture, and Rhyne's Corner Cupboard Antiques. These stores are very important to several people such as The Salvation Army for the poor, Southside Hardware Company for car related places, and Coe Grocery for food supplies. The Southern Railway, of course, still exists today because Greensboro is known for traveling, especially on the train. This is something that was established a while back and will continue to progress because it has and always will help people to get to their destinations.

Tracing the Tracks:Opening the Gates

The train is very important to several people such as people without transportation or possibly high gas prices. The train was important to people in the past because back then, many people couldn't afford some vehicles and it wasn't that many vehicles available way back in time. The train was important to people in the present because recently we had problems with high gas prices. The train will probably be important in the future because gas prices will probably be extremely high.

*Flight Schedule to the Piedmont Triad International Airport*

http://www.ifly.com/piedmont-triad-international-airport/GSO-airport-flight-status-arrivals

Besides our community being one of the main places for immigrants, High Point is also another gateway for immigrants to come into the United States.

*Here are some instituitons where non-Western European culture is embedded:

http://www.unc.edu/depts/slavdept/ljanda...

http://www.neh.gov/news/awards/publicfeb...

http://oncampus.richmond.edu/faculty/ASA...

Guilford College

UNCG

Downtown Institutions

*Center City Park*

We discussed in class that there used to be buildings here where Center City Park is now located. They might have reserved this open space for this park because every city needs a spot for nature. People love to be able to come to a peaceful and nonbusy spot to relax. That was probably the purpose of saving that open space for that park. The fountains are the main quality of the park that makes it so comforting. So in other words the park symbolizes equity and peace.

*The Cultural Center*

The Cultural Center seems like a nice place to just come and enjoy yourself. The "avenue" of this building is like saying everybody is welcome to come and look at the performances or look at the beautiful art. I liked how the west exit ended up right where we started. This building gives me the sense of being free and just having fun however you please. It has that positive vibe in it!!! This is probably the reason why citizens feel free to just come there whenever they get ready. It makes your frown turn into a smile!! This building symbolizes happiness.

*The Central Library*

As we observed earlier, the main library used to be where Elon University is now located. They might have moved the library possibly because of space, traffic wise, or to feel the need of reorganizing. One thing that I noticed was the dome on the 2nd floor. In this building the dome means freedom. When I looked up at it, I could see myself flying freely through one of those windows. So can you imagine people who use to be in prison think of when they see that dome?

*The Greensboro Historical Museum*

We discussed earlier that the museum used to be a civic auditorium and a library in between. They might have let this building become a museum because of the importance of the civic auditorium and the library. They were probably also honored to make this building one that will always be remembered. The museum gives one the sense of being somewhat old! You don't even feel like you're in 2009! Some people may like that effect that the museum gives off on them so this is like an advantage.

*The Former Public Library*

As we observed earlier, Elon University used to be the library. I noticed that this library would have been alot smaller than the Central Library. This might have been the reason why they moved it. Both of them were two story but the former library looked more formal than Central Library. In my opinion, the Central Library seems like a library than the former one. The former library looks more like a business or bank complex.

*

Back to the Center

*The Skyscraper*

Let's start with the skyscraper that we observed today.I figured that I could compare this building to the church located in College Hill because they have some similarities, but they also have several differences. The skyscraper and the church in College Hill are both "turfs". The skyscraper is like a turf because of the height and design of the building. It's like no other building in the city. The church is like a turf because of the long stairs that lead up to the church and the location. It's actually located on the corner of a street. The difference is that the skyscraper is more like an "epitome district", where the church i s more like one of the "fronts" of the neighborhood.

*The Alleys*

The center of downtown Greensboro and College Hill both have alleys, but they have different qualities and purposes. The alleys that we observed today in downtown Greensboro are more artistic and a little bit smaller than the ones in College Hill. The alley with the artistic water slide looking thing was so that the water would run down into a box when it rains and to cover up the other side. The other alley was so that the city could put a few little stores such as the bakery in it. The alleys in College Hill are more for parking and getting to the back of houses or apartments. Both of these alleys were like "strips" and possibly "infills".

*The KRESS Building*

We didn't talk about the KRESS building much but after observing it, I compared it to the caf on campus. Both of these buildings are like "beats" because this is where several people go often. The difference is that the caf is like a "sink" or a "stack", whereas KRESS is like part of a "strip". This is more like a strip because several people are walking or driving up and down this road everyday. It catches people's attention because it serves food and entertainment.

Blandwood

Today we looked at the Blandwood building on Washington St. This property has 100 acres and is the oldest standing of Italianate structure. It is very unique because it was once the Keeling Institute and it has very interesting decorations. To the left and right of the front room was the West parlor and the East parlor. The West parlor was more formal and known as the “king” parlor. The East parlor was less formal and known as the “queen” parlor. The chandeliers had a unique design from the circle that it was hanging from. They might have added a new face to the original house twice because maybe they wanted a new look or they may have been trying to keep up with the style of most houses in that time. The family probably found it necessary to continue updating the structure because it could have represented their wealth or their reputation.
The building had high ceilings to allow the heat to rise and flow out the open doors and windows of the house. The doors in the parlor had mirrors on the back of them to reflect light. In the other parlor, they had mirrors on the window doors. Their bedrooms were also kind of cool. They had three bedrooms upstairs and one downstairs. In one bedroom, they had sleigh beds and in the other they had decorative back boards. Many people in the past probably admired the Blandwood house because they were so wealthy and had nice things that many probably didn’t have. The building was probably a role model for how they would want their house to look like one day.

Today we observed certain properties such as the Wafco Mill, the apartment buildings, Greensboro College, the skyscraper, and other old industrial buildings.

-- Let's start with the Wafco Mill. The Wafco Mill complex, as we know of, used to be and apartment or possibly a factory building due to the brick material and multiple windows. I also noticed the railroad track that is not in use anymore. The railroad track could have been a transporter for people and for the supplies of grain and flour. If I was organizing a map or rebuilding things, I would turn the Wafco Mill into an apartment building for students who attend UNCG and Greensboro College. This building is very convienent when it comes to certain buildings on Washington or Blanewood street.

--What about the old brick building behind the new Fulton Place apartments? That building also seemed to be an industrial building in the past. It could've been a small factory or a warehouse. In the place of this building, I would put a parking lot so that there will be more space for students who attend UNCG or live in the apartments to park. It's very convienent because it's right behind the Fulton Place apartments and it is walking distance from the UNCG campus.

--We also observed this white and black building that is to the other side of the Fulton Place apartments. This building could have been a meeting house for UNCG or maybe even a faternity house. I would have also turned this building into an apartment complex so that their will be more space for students from UNCG or Greensboro College to stay. This building is walking distance from the campus and it could also serve as a bus stop.

Side streets & Back alleys

Last week we looked at the main streets(Tate and Mendenhall). These two streets have features such as less driveways, multiple occupancy houses(double-doors), and ancient houses such as the Pink house. Most of the housing materials contain brick, siding, wood trim, and vinyl siding. These streets also have mini parking lots where so students won't have to walk so far.

Side streets such as Carr, Rankin, Walker, and McGee have several different features. Most of these side streets had alleys which some were made for parking. In some of these alleys there were sewage drains and fences that kind of marked each houses territory or "turf". On Carr street we discovered what looked like a storage building or possibly a garage. It was strange to see this because we havn't seen any other building that was like this one. These side streets also had several apartment buildings where Tate and Mendenhall didn't have as many. As it was said in class, their is a mixture of residential students and homeowners who do not attend UNCG. They also have parking issues such as 2-hour parking enforced signs. Tate and Mendenhall has a few more parking spaces than the side streets.

HSS 105

Let's start with Piety Hill; piety hill is now downtown Greensboro. The downtown area used to be farmland with cows, chickens,etc. Can you imagine that a farm used to be there? One can also tell that it used to be a farm because of the big slope going down. Most farms have big hills like that.


The west end of Mendenhall Street is more like the residential area of UNCG. We discovered several houses today that has been here for a long time. Several of them had people that lived in them that didn't attend UNCG in the past. There were several types of houses such as italianated, classical revival, neo-classical, shingle, and modern. The first three houses that we examined on Mendenhall were classical revival type houses. The first house was the oldest and the second house was the newest. So the west end is like another historical site where many used to live in extraordinary houses.


College Hill is like the circle of schools where it all began. Greensboro College is the oldest college of the other colleges. The other colleges included UNCG, Guilford College, Greensboro College, and Bennet. Most of these schools were founded by woman. College Hill is like saying these are the best colleges in a sense. These colleges have achieved so much in a lifetime and that's why they stand out.


*Questions*

• When one tries to infill a porch, their purpose may be to make it into steps-make a larger porch-or to make it smaller perhaps.


• When one tries to infill a farm, their purpose may be to make a small city(such as we saw today)-make a small shopping center-or put more houses there for the community.


• When one tries to infill a church, their purpose may be to make a bigger church-make more room for small stores-or for more parking lots(as we saw today).


• When one triesto infill an apartment, their purpose may be to make bigger apartments-make houses instead of apartments-or to make a park for the community.