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June 23, 2012

Le Blob d'Seattle: We're #1!

Are these America's ugliest buildings? Architects name structures they'd like to see leveled for the love of design
blobuglyseattle.jpg

Posted by gerardvanderleun at June 23, 2012 8:54 PM. This is an entry on the sideblog of American Digest: Check it out.

Your Say

Yeah Rock&Roll museum. Its pretty lame inside, too.

Posted by: Christopher Taylor at June 23, 2012 9:11 PM

It looks as if a Christmas decoration fell on a couple of aluminum pigs. Rok'n Rill forever!

Posted by: JB at June 24, 2012 6:05 AM

Seriously, it looks like Megatron took a dump!

Posted by: Hunt Johnsen at June 24, 2012 7:34 AM

The AT&T buildings are ugly, but for a good reason: they are designed as giant fallout shelters.

You'll note that most have air intakes high above the ground (no sucking up hot dust), massive ferroconcrete construction w/masonry or granite veneer (gamma radiation shield), few or no windows (windows = holes in radiation shield), and few ground-level entrances/exits (fallout collects at ground level).

They also generally have ceiling clearances twice that of an ordinary skyscraper (18-20' ceilings are not uncommon) and are constructed to civil engineering standards, some capable of supporting hundreds of pounds per square foot of floor. The building heights (distance) plus lack of windows (shielding) means that these buildings possess lots of middle-floor interior spaces vulnerable only to skyshine from fallout -- and the thick walls block that.




The big AT&T building in New York (33 Thomas Street at Church) is an example. Google it and you'll see what I mean. The phone company buildings in most big cities are similar.


AT&T knows that come what may the phones have got to work. That's why they put their 4ESS switches into buildings that are built like fortresses. They are proof against fallout, quakes, floods, and (yes) physical attack by armed enemies.

I'd guess that the 9/11 bombers probably couldn't have knocked down a telephone company building: they are basically gigantic, above-ground bunkers are are probably immune to kamikaze aircraft attacks.

AT&T's buildings are great examples of functional architecture, not works of art, and it is not fair to judge them on an aesthetic basis.

Posted by: B Lewis at June 24, 2012 1:31 PM

The first time I saw the EMP I thought a blimp had crashed. Damn, that thing is ugly.

Posted by: Dar at June 25, 2012 9:04 AM

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