  Aiw Member Username: Aiw Post Number: 5986 Registered: 10-2003 |
Here is today's P.D.J. | ||
Douglasm Member Username: Douglasm Post Number: 701 Registered: 10-2003 |
Memory refreshment, please. The Holiday Inn was on the riverfront across the river from Cobo Hall, wasn't it? | ||
Aiw Member Username: Aiw Post Number: 5987 Registered: 10-2003 |
Yes Sir. | ||
Fastcarsfreedom Member Username: Fastcarsfreedom Post Number: 77 Registered: 11-2005 |
The posting of today's PDJ also illustrates that architectural taste is individual. Though most architectural enthusiasts would argue that the Holiday Inn was nondescript at best--it did have architectural elements that were indicative of it's era. Looking back over the past century, many architectural styles that we now consider priceless were once thought of as "ugly"--the modernist and international style forms of the 1950s to 1970s are only now gaining the respect they so richly deserve. For myself it is also a place of nostalgia--I have countless memories of it, and so it's worth to me was not counted by bricks and mortar (or plywood) so much as it was by shared memories and the passage of time. The views from it's restaurant and bar (Maxwell's and the Fore N Aft Lounge) were unmatched in Windsor--as was the vista from the lobby of the Odeon Theater. The Old AGW/Interim Casino, for it's lack of merit architecturally was incredibly solid in it's construction. | ||
Aiw Member Username: Aiw Post Number: 5988 Registered: 10-2003 |
I agree 100% Fast Cars. The modern era 1945-65 (especailly in Windsor) is under appreciated. I'm working on a project that involves documentation of them. | ||
Fastcarsfreedom Member Username: Fastcarsfreedom Post Number: 78 Registered: 11-2005 |
That's great news Aiw--Windsor doesn't have a huge inventory of modernist buildings--but there are certainly a few notable examples. I'm curious as to the U of W's plans for Essex College once the Engineering Faculty relocates to it's new premise. Preservation-wise we are getting to a juncture where some modernist buildings have quickly come up against their useful lifespan--in particular because early attempts at light-weight construction were less-than-perfectly executed. In Hamilton, Ontario, a multi-million dollar renovation and restoration has just gotten underway which will preserve the modernist City Hall in close to it's original form. Frailties in it's construction had led to extensive damage to the structure, and demolition was very nearly considered prior to the decision to restore. http://pages.interlog.com/~urb anism/hamcityhall_b&w.jpg | ||
Jjaba Member Username: Jjaba Post Number: 4466 Registered: 11-2003 |
Midcentury modernism is catching on. Ranch homes are in demand. There's good architecture out there which endures. If you want Holiday Inn, try Trumbull Ave. south of the ballpark, now Corktown Inn. Maybe you can get a Windsor View from there, who knows? The Detroit security system is worth the price of the rooms. Thanks AIW for the Detroit Iron in the parking lot of the Windsor Holiday Inn. Love that sign too. jjaba. | ||
Goat Member Username: Goat Post Number: 8970 Registered: 10-2003 |
I wouldn't lump 1970's architecture in with the modern era of 1945-65. The architectural designs in that period far outweigh anything built in the 1970's (of course who can forget the aluminum wiring fiasco of that decade). | ||
Jjaba Member Username: Jjaba Post Number: 4467 Registered: 11-2003 |
Old Holiday Inn sites on Freeways across N. America make great Wal-Mart locations. Sort of like the wealth of K-Mart land. Holiday Inn was wonderful the way they de-segregated the motel industry all over the world. jjaba often stayed black and tan in the South back then. jjaba. | ||
Aiw Member Username: Aiw Post Number: 5990 Registered: 10-2003 |
Fastcars, the results of my project will be exhibited at the Art Gallery of Windsor in an Architectural Photography show, September 2007. | ||
Fastcarsfreedom Member Username: Fastcarsfreedom Post Number: 79 Registered: 11-2005 |
Excellent news Aiw. You're correct about Wal*Mart--the vast majority of "original" Holiday Inns, and Howard Johnson's Lodges for that matter, have fallen victim to the fact that they were usually low-rise buildings that sprawled out across several acres--too inefficient a use of valuable real estate in the modern era. And you're correct Jjaba--that Holiday Inn "Great Sign" looks incredible in that shot, as do all those great looking autos. | ||
Irish_mafia Member Username: Irish_mafia Post Number: 658 Registered: 10-2003 |
That was the scene of our promised "International Vacation" when I was a child. If you were on one of the boats that the ice cubes from the machine hit... I apologize. | ||
Jjaba Member Username: Jjaba Post Number: 4471 Registered: 11-2003 |
Fastcars, welcome to The Forum. jjaba, on the Westside. | ||
Fastcarsfreedom Member Username: Fastcarsfreedom Post Number: 80 Registered: 11-2005 |
Thanks Jjaba--good to be here. | ||
Jjaba Member Username: Jjaba Post Number: 4473 Registered: 11-2003 |
Are there older Holiday Inns left in Windsor or around Detroit? We know about Corktown and Highland Park demises. Kalamazoo had an original on Cork Street as jjaba recalls. Is it still there? There are probably some out near Detroit Metro Airport, eh. jjaba, just wondering. | ||
Jjaba Member Username: Jjaba Post Number: 4474 Registered: 11-2003 |
Other than Havana, Cuba, are there any places in Canada or USA where old cars are still on the streets? jjaba. | ||
Upinottawa Member Username: Upinottawa Post Number: 620 Registered: 09-2005 |
Jjaba: Windsor has a Holiday Inn Select on Huron Church about 5 minutes south of the bridge. It is a newer building. |
