Yes, the Calgary Courthouse would never fly here. Unfortunately, not much that does not copy design of 100 years ago with cheaper mass produced materials will. It will be interesting to see how future generations view the architecture of this era. I imagine, if Klutho had just come down in 2001, his prairie school style ideas would have quickly been shut down in favor or copying styles from past generations.
As for the courthouse itself, I care more about how it meets the street, then the structure itself. That's the major downfall of the design, imo. From a money standpoint, I'm also not crazy about the one story piece causing the relocation of Monroe Street. It would seem to be cheaper to take the main structure up an extra floor or two, thus eliminating the need to relocate Monroe Street and the utilities under it. After all, we're already paying for the elevators, stairwells and the structural system. Because we refused to work with the surrounding context and in a vertical nature we're going to kill the redevelopment potential of two full blocks and pay a few extra million to relocate a two block stretch of street.
Anyway, as mentioned earlier "it is what it is". Now its time to focus on getting the best use out of the carved up land surrounding the structure. If we can do this, it will have a greater positive impact on the downtown environment.
