The members of the Ithaca Landmarks Preservation Commission were pleased to read in the Feb. 9 Journal that Cornell University Real Estate officials now envision their proposed downtown office building as being "shorter than the 10 or 12 stories first discussed." We applaud Cornell's commitment to move some of its offices into a new center-city structure and hope that this goal in fact will be accomplished in a manner that respects the modest urban scale of the existing fabric.
In addition, we are reassured to learn that Cornell continues to consider alternatives to its proposed site selection: the Tompkins County Trust Company property on Bank Alley, the northernmost leg of The Commons.
This commission considers Bank Alley worthy of local landmark designation and potentially eligible for designation on the National Register of Historic Places. The two 19th century Trust Company structures -- one built for county offices and the other as a bank -- are critical anchors to this important block and contribute significantly to its character. They have been well cared for by the Trust Company and their identities have been maintained, even with the insertion of a modern entrance lobby.
Cornell representatives have stated repeatedly the university's willingness to "preserve the facades" of these structures. To attach remnant facades to a substantially larger new structure would leave the city with a two-dimensional representation of what had been lost.
Some might argue that saving a facade conserves the most essential part of a structure. This approach is rarely successful and often disastrous. In the case of the Trust Company buildings, a new structure would tower four to six stories above the existing facades.
The designer's challenge to create anything in character with the facades and the surrounding buildings would be formidable. Even with the most clever design, such a huge mass above the facades will greatly diminish their aesthetic and historical significance.
We want to be clear: We do not oppose the project in principle. Indeed, our desire to improve the downtown core is as strong as that of Cornell and elected city officials. However, we wish to encourage the selection of an alternate site for this project. We suggest one of the many low-density sites now used for grade-level parking or drive-though banking.
Choosing an alternate site provides a win-win opportunity for the entire community, the realization of the Cornell proposal and resulting additional development, and the preservation of the architectural character of Bank Alley and the larger Commons district.
This latter benefit seems perfectly in keeping with the city's ongoing redesign of The Commons. The intrusion of an office tower on The Commons, in fact, counters the hard work and financial investment that the city and the Ithaca Downtown Partnership have given the redesign.
The Downtown Design Plan, developed in 1992 and adopted as part of the City's comprehensive plan in 1997, prescribes "controls on future building heights...to protect the integrity of historic architecture, preserve the scale of spaces between buildings and prevent shadows from being cast on adjacent properties." This detailed and thoughtful plan is an instrument intended to be used as a measure of the appropriateness and effectiveness of individual projects, and we encourage its use by the Planning and Development Board for all new construction.
Finally, one of the best ways to garner broad-based support in a planning process is for the parties to be inclusive and open. The Ithaca Landmarks Preservation Commission hopes that this will be the case with the Cornell project.
This column was written by Landmarks Commission Chair Stephen Somogy, Vice-Chair David Beer and Commission members Nancy Falconer, Kathleen Foley and Mary Raddant Tomlan.
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