Big Postal Progress

There is big news of a positive nature on our poor beleaguered post office on Park Road ("the old post office").  A new developer has struck a deal to take over design and construction of condos, ground floor retail and underground parking while preserving the historic parts of the structure--as required by its historic designation.  This is welcome news on several fronts--the last proposed design was not good, but especially because the building has been languishing for years and was in danger of suffering "demolition by neglect".

The new developer, Saris Regis, has engaged BAR Architects out of the city to start over from scratch and from what the press release on the deal says, it appears Lot E next door will be dedicated to a Town Square feature which downtown could really use.  It just doesn't show B'game in a good light to have, for instance, the First Friday bands playing under a tiny pergola on the Ave. with people stopping on the sidewalk for a song or two.

Saris Regis isn't known as simply a design and construction management firm, so my guess is there is another part of the story that would include an outright purchase that can be solidified as the project details -- and the ensuing approvals -- come to pass.  This is all good news and to the extent it has had several council members' attention and effort being expended to come up with a more B'game appropriate design, they are to be congratulated.

It's my practice to not criticize development project (too much) until they are finished so I'll withhold too much praise in the same vein, but this does look like positive news for B'game's core.

Comments

[Russ Cohen]

There are times where even the editors of The Voice agree to disagree. While I don't disagree that putting the development of the PO site in the hands of responsible developers as opposed to the previous firm who had no clue how to successfully move forward is a step in the right direction. I do not mind opining or critiquing the developer who has taken over. Having worked close to some of their completed projects, some of them simply don't work well within their environs. I can't supply photos on this comment due to the blogs technical limitations, I would encourage those reading here to take a glance at Saris-Regus of Northern Cal. LinkedIn page:

https://www.linkedin.com/company/sares-regis-group-northern-california/

Here you will see some of their projects. I encourage all those that read The Voice to not be bystanders, but to keep their eyes on this important project and attend the meetings when they occur. We here at The Voice will keep you posted on when those meeting s will occur.

[Joe]

Good points, Russ. I did a bit of looking into the history and it appears that in some cases Saris-Regus also steps into projects that have gone awry in midstream, so not all of them have their chosen architects' fingerprints on them.

You last thought is most important!!