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Central Square

if it's about Cardiff.. Sport, Entertainment, Transportation, Business, Development Projects, Leisure, Eating, Drinking, Nightlife, Shopping, Train Spotting! etc.. then we want it here!
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Ash

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Re: Central Square

PostFri Jun 08, 2018 8:40 am

Simon_SW17 wrote:Looks like your wish is their command, new pics on WOL including this one of the apartment block on Wood Street. I’m not sure about it’s relationship with The Prince of Wales and the BBC building though, very different height.


It's a sign of how the ambitions for Central Square have grown that the BBC building which was designed as the centrepiece of the development now looks quite small compared to what's being built around it. Personally I don't think that's a problem as the BBC HQ is a little gem that attracts the eye anyway.

Here's how it was meant to look back in 2015. It's grown a bit since! 8-)

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RandomComment

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Re: Central Square

PostFri Jun 08, 2018 10:51 am

cardiffian wrote:Looks great from that angle, as long as they keep the top bit.
I think the difference in height is great, would be bland if smaller.


Really? I think it looks pretty hideous. I really don't get this fad for dark coloured tall buildings. They only look good on bright sunny days. Other times they're oppresive. And we're not exactly the Costa del Sol.
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Baysailor

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Re: Central Square

PostFri Jun 08, 2018 12:42 pm

What it is missing is a good old fashioned statue and water feature. Some sort of public artwork to give the square a focal point.
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Ash

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Re: Central Square

PostFri Jun 08, 2018 3:07 pm

Baysailor wrote:What it is missing is a good old fashioned statue and water feature. Some sort of public artwork to give the square a focal point.


There's one planned, a statue that is.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-south-east-wales-41267390
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cardiffian

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Re: Central Square

PostFri Jun 08, 2018 4:39 pm

Statues and water features! My god you people have no taste!
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Cen

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Re: Central Square

PostFri Jun 08, 2018 6:19 pm

cardiffian wrote:Statues and water features! My god you people have no taste!
I don’t quite understand... So you want a huge, empty square with no statues or water features? What exactly would you have there? A few restaurants aren’t going to suddenly make it Trafalgar Square. It will be dead.

I’m personally very happy that we haven’t gone down that route. There’s no need for a square of that size. And what with Central Quay in the pipeline, I just can’t see Central Square ever being a social destination.
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RandomComment

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Re: Central Square

PostFri Jun 08, 2018 6:25 pm

I'm not a massive fan of the residential element of this design, but I just took a look at WalesOnline comments.

Who actually comments on that site? All negativity about the design, BBC car parking spaces ("on top of OUR bus station"), complaints its a "part time bus station" thats "not big enough" and not right in front of the station (oooh its off to the side). Above all though accusations of backhanders/brown envelopes to the council and to/from BBC.

Now I'm not naive enough to think there aren't issues with corruption and poor governance. But the degree of cynicism, pessimism, shown in Wales (and the UK more generally) at the moment when it comes to politicians and public life, is just counter-productive. If politicians think the public hold them in utter contempt, and there isn't much you can do about it apart from being populist, then moderates with principles who don't want to be populists are more likely to err (they'll hate us anyway); some will be pushed to populism (and the problems that brings); and populists can get away with more because people like the easy answers / blame games they peddle.
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EvanRoberts

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Re: Central Square

PostFri Jun 08, 2018 6:36 pm

RandomComment wrote:I think it looks pretty hideous. I really don't get this fad for dark coloured tall buildings. They only look good on bright sunny days. Other times they're oppresive. And we're not exactly the Costa del Sol.


I agree, really do not like the design of the tower. As much as I am all for increasing the urban density, personally I would like to see new buildings restricted to around ten stories unless the design is of iconic potential.
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Cen

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Re: Central Square

PostFri Jun 08, 2018 6:40 pm

I think it looks okay. I just want to see more glass-based buildings going up. Which, looking at the planning documents, was the original intention for this tower!

I don’t understand why architects feel the need to be edgy and funky when the best looking buildings are usually the simplest, with money spent on quality materials instead of zany design work, which usually goes out of fashion before the build is even complete!
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Ash

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Re: Central Square

PostFri Jun 08, 2018 7:58 pm

RandomComment wrote:I'm not a massive fan of the residential element of this design, but I just took a look at WalesOnline comments.

Who actually comments on that site? All negativity about the design, BBC car parking spaces ("on top of OUR bus station"), complaints its a "part time bus station" thats "not big enough" and not right in front of the station (oooh its off to the side). Above all though accusations of backhanders/brown envelopes to the council and to/from BBC.



I make it a rule to never read the comments on newspaper websites. They are almost always vile. I suspect most of them are posted by bitter old men who have nothing better to do!
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