Changing Skyline: Courting mediocrity with bland designing

EwingCole's Family Court design will barely qualify for the basic rating - silver - from the U.S. Green Building Council. Not only will there be no green roof or solar panels, the courthouse's bulk is likely to block sunlight from the solar panels on the roof of the Friends Meeting House on Cherry Street, which was just declared the greenest building in Pennsylvania.

A less mean-spirited courthouse design would have treated that landmark 1856 meeting house to the courtesy of a setback, to keep it from being hemmed in. Indeed, the design could be improved instantly by converting the slab into a tall, slim tower on Arch Street, with a modest lower portion extending to Cherry Street.

Castille argues that it's not fair to compare Family Court with a federal courthouse. Local courthouses require more infrastructure, such as holding cells, and they must handle far bigger crowds. That means security drives the design for local courts even more than it does for federal courts. Family Court's lobby is a cattle chute intended to process thousands of people who will all arrive at the same hour.

For all the worry about containing costs, Family Court will be outfitted with a 265-car underground garage. Of course, it's commendable that the state's hired developer, Oliver Tyrone Pulver Corp., is keeping the garage out of sight. But such facilities are hugely expensive, and two enormous garages exist within a two-block walk. Because access to the courthouse garage will be from busy 15th Street, it's hard to believe there won't be traffic backups that further snarl 15th.

The Family Court saga has illuminated one heartening trend: the willingness of Mayor Nutter's appointees to debate projects openly. The Art Commission members voiced their true feelings when they discussed Family Court last month. Now let's see if they'll vote them when they meet in March.

Contact architecture critic Inga Saffron at 215-854-2213 or isaffron@phillynews.com.