Hall of infamy

George Thrush, the director of the school of architecture at Northeastern University, writes at length in today's Globe about Mayor Menino's recent announcement that he'd like to build a new City Hall on the waterfront and all the of the discussion that this idea has unleashed. Thrush's main point is that even those who love the Brutalist concrete fort on the windswept plain of bricks should see this as an opportunity to makeover a chunk of the center of the city and that we should all embrace that opportunity.

While I understand that some in the architecture field admire Concrete Hall for its uncompromising design, the fact that it's as ugly as sin is not my biggest beef. It's cold and dreary inside and the entire plaza is a wind tunnel of wasted space. Only thirdly does the way the building looks -- as ugly as roadkill -- come into play. I fiercely oppose moving the seat of city government to the less accessible Southie waterfront, but I would like to see a downtown building worthy of Boston amongst a layout of streets teeming with life, day and night. As Thrush points out, we cannot go back to the winding streets and storefronts of Scollay Square and the West End, but we needn't feel that the current set-up is the best we can do, either.