December 2024 | Eyesore

Commentary on architectural blunders in monthly serial.

We’re all for adaptive re-use of old buildings, but just maybe consider a little artistry in the execution of the project. This humdinger used to be St. Somebody’s church in Lawrence, Massachusetts, until a developer got ahold of it and dumped a packing crate over its head to build some commodity “housing.” It’s horrible enough brand-new, but imagine how it will age out. Nice treatment of the gothic windows on the original façade. Just brick-em up — with plywood option. Why bother saving it, really? The new windows on the packing-crate addition are remarkable, too, for their complete absence of aesthetic. They are, in fact, just holes in the wall covered in glass. If the units within are condos, as opposed to rentals, then I tremble for the future of the homeowner’s association that comes with the whole package. Flat roof failure warning ahead. Just sayin’. . . .

Thanks to Tom Thomas for the nomination and to Jacob Shell (@JacobAShell) for posting the darn thing on “X”.

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Eyesore of the Month Since 1998

For the first time ever, you can now binge-read and comment on the complete “Eyesore of the Month” archive going all the way back to this feature’s debut in March 1998. That’s more than 300 architectural blunders, abortions and abominations to make you chortle, snort and guffaw. Click here to read them all.