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Bell & Howell Information and Learning 300 North Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 USA 800-521-0600 NationaJ library Bibliothi!que nationate 1+1 of Canada du Canada Acquisitions and Acquisitions et Bibliographie Services services bibliographiques 395 WeUington Street 395. rue Wellington Ottawa ON K1 A ON4 Ottawa ON K1A ON4 Canada Canada The author has granted a non L, auteur a accorde une licence non exclusive licence allowing the exclusive pennettant a la National Library of Canada to Bibliotheque nationale du Canada de reproduce, loan, distribute or sell reproduire, preter, distribuer ou copies of this thesis in microform, vendee des copies de cette these sons paper or electronic formats. la forme de microfiche/film, de reproduction sur papier ou sur format electronique. The author retains ownership of the L' auteur conserve 1a propriete du copyright in this thesis. Neither the droit d' auteur qui protege cette these. thesis nor substantial extracts from it Ni 1a these ni des extraits substantiels may be printed or otherwise de celle-ci ne doivent etre imprimes reproduced without the author's ou autrement reproduits sans son pernnsston. autorisation. 0-612-54967-4 Can ad~ DEVELOPMENT AND DESTRUCfiON IN DOWNTOWN ST. JOHN'S The Embodiment of Cultural Values in Architecture: A Case Study of Urban Development and Heritage Preservation in St. John's. Newfoundland. 1977-1997. by John A. Trahey A thesis submitted to the School of Graduate Studies in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Department of Geography Memorial University of Newfoundland April2000 St. John's Newfoundland Abstract Architecture is often interpreted as a reflection of the cultural values of the society that produced it (Gloag, 1975; King, 1980; Meinig, l979; Penning-Rowsell and Lowenthal, 1986). Change in the architecture of the townscape is seen as indicative of change in the cultural constitution of a society. This study seeks to answer the question: What cultural values are embodied in the architecture of St. John's, Newfoundland - specifically, in the architectural changes evident in the construction of large-scale commercial architecture in downtown St. John's in the period 1977 to l997. This most dramatic recent change in the townscape of St. John's is characterized by two main physical results-development and destruction - as represented by the advent of large-scale commercial architecture and the concurrent complement of vacant sites and parking lots. The starting point of this study is the present state of the townscape - the physical reality of the city. In order to gain an understanding of the cultural values underlying this physical reality, the decisions made leading to that present state, and the context in which they were made, are examined. Through this study an attempt is made to read the physical reality of the city to determine what cultural values may be embodied therein. This is done through an examination of the case study sites of development and non development in downtown St. John's in the time period given. Data, in the form of interviews and documentary sources, relating to the case study sites, were collected and compiled in case study reports. These case studies were then analyzed with a view to identifying the influences, motivations, and constraints affecting the decisions made about building and the context in which those decisions were made. Frequently recurring themes were identified, and the implications of those themes interpreted as to their importance with respect to the cultural values these decisions reflect. On the basis of this research, it is concluded that a predilection for the new over the preservation of the past is demonstrated through the case study sites of development and non-development in downtown St. John's. The primacy of progress, as identified with new development, is evident through the histories of'the case study sites examined, taken together and in context. l1 The debates over development that emerged during this period were resolved in favour of development, despite the opposition of those advocating the preservation of older architecture. It is concluded that the primacy of progress represents a cultural value that is embodied in the architecture of St. John's as examined in this study. lll Acknowledgments I would like to thank the following individuals who have helped me with the research and compilation of the thesis study: thesis supervisor Dr. Christopher Sharpe, associate professor, Department of Geography, Memorial University of Newfoundland, and members of my advisory committee Dr. Jo Shawyer, and Dr. William Allderdice, associate professors of the Department of Geography, Memorial University of Newfoundland; Helen Miller and Iris Power of the City of St. John's Archives; Ken O'Brien and Paul Boundrige of the Planning Department of the City of St. John's; William Tilley, CLB Archivist; Gary McManus and Charles Conway of Memorial University of Newfoundland Cartographic Laboratory; Mark Smith, Milestone Communications; and Martha Trahey, Sandra Everson and Mona Rossiter for support and editorial assistance. tV TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Abstract ..................................................................................... ii Acknowledgments .................................................................... iv Table of Contents ...................................................................... v List of Illustrations .................................................................... x List of Tables ........................................................................... xi Introduction .................................................................................................. 1 Chapter 1 Architecture and Cultural Valoes ........................................... 6 1.1 Architecture as a Cui tural Artifact ............................................6 1.2 Architecture, Cultural Values, and the Individual ......................8 1.3 Agents and the Decision-Making Process ............................... 11 1.4 Cultural Values and Value in Architecture .............................. 14 1.4.1 Cultural Values ........................................................... 14 1.4.2 Value ........................................................................... 17 1.4.3 Value in Architecture: The Real Estate Market .......... 20 Chapter 2 Preservation, Speculation and Urban Form ....................... 23 2.1 Historic Preservation ............................................................... 24 2.1.1 Valuation of the Past in the Modem Era .................... 24 2.1.2 Preservation and Destruction ...................................... 28 2.1.3 Preservation and Economic Decline ........................... 32 2.1.4 Zone of Discard and Zone of Assimilation ................ 34 2.1.5 Transportation and Suburbanization ........................... 35 2.1.6 Gentrification and Social Displacement ..................... 38 2.1.7 Financial Institutions and the Decline of the Inner City' ...............................•....................................•...... 39 2.1.8 Regulation ................................................................... 42 v 2.1.9 Modernism vs. Post-Modernism ................................. 49 2.2 Speculative Development and Economic Restructuring ....... .. 53 2.2.1 Global Economic Restructuring ................................. 53 2.2.2 The Globalization of Finance ..................................... 55 2.2.3 Insurance Companies and Integration ....................... .56 2.2.4 Leveraging and Global Real Estate Development ..... .57 2.2.5 Local vs. Non-Local ................................................... 59 2.2.6 Form and Rhetoric in the Post-Modem City ..............63 2.3 Urban Form/Built Form ........................................................... 67 2.3.1 Plan, Built Form, and Use ..........................................67 2.3 .2 Morphological Frame and Differential Change ..........68 2.3 .3 Morphological Period ................................................. 69 2.3.4 Catastrophic Change. Destruction, and Development 70 Chapter 3 Context and Methodology ....................................................

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