[Sosfbay-discuss] Milpitas BART station designed as vaulted glass, steel

[JamBoi]

http://www.themilpitaspost.com/local/ci_5856077
BART station designed as vaulted glass, steel
Milpitas Post On-line
by Ian Bauer
Article Launched: 05/09/2007 03:20:47 PM PDT
http://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/media/site93/2007/0510/20070509__local07_VIEWER.jpg

The so-called "Great Vault of Milpitas" received its
initial endorsement from city officials last week.

Milpitas City Council May 1 unanimously approved the
conceptual architectural design of Milpitas' Bay Area
Rapid Transit station an expansive, vaulted glass and
steel structure set to cover a below-grade station
near Montague Expressway and Capitol Avenue, south of
GreatMall.

City council's vote over the preferred Milpitas BART
station design paves the way for Santa Clara Valley
Transportation Authority's own adoption of preliminary
engineering plans for rapid transit in the South Bay.

Those initial plans, which include planned BART
stations in Milpitas, San Jose and Santa Clara, are
expected to be adopted at the June 7 VTA Board of
Directors meeting.

City staff, VTA representatives and the BART station's
architect presented station plans to the city council.

Because of its large size, Milpitas BART station
architect Eli Naor offered the station's unofficial
name.

"We have now started calling it affectionately the
"Great Vault of Milpitas,'" Naor told council members.
"It is something very much designed in recognition of
transit; the great vaulted train stations that you see
in Europe."

The architect
Advertisement
<A TARGET="_blank"
HREF="http://ad.doubleclick.net/click%3Bh=v8/355d/f/36/%2a/j%3B94476806%3B0-0%3B0%3B16545222%3B4307-300/250%3B20570314/20588208/1%3B%3B%7Esscs%3D%3fhttp://adopt.specificclick.net/click.sm?adv=1366&href=http%3a%2f%2fmercuryvehicles.com/mariner/%3FsReferrer%3D370762|16545222|94476806|20570314"><IMG
SRC="http://m1.2mdn.net/690330/300x250_08Mariner_Life_Parking_4_2_2007.jpg"
BORDER=0></A>
added Milpitas' BART station is planned to be a "very
recognizable" open public space.

Milpitas' transit station, he added, would be the
first stop on the extension into Santa Clara County.
He said the station would support up to 30,000
passengers daily.

"This is not only a landmark in the region relative to
transportation, but it's also an important amenity and
potentially a strong economic driver," Naor said.

Milpitas' BART station is planned as a partially
underground station built in a "retained cut."

However, the station's final size, and its layout
along Montague Expressway, have not been finalized.

As proposed, the station may have two side platforms
for riders to wait for trains. There was some
discussion over the merits of a center platform for
riders.

But VTA officials stated the retained-cut option would
present "engineering challenges" that forced the use
of side platforms.

The city council requested further study of a center
platform option.

The exterior design of Milpitas BART station, however,
drew the strongest attention from council members, in
particular Mayor Jose Esteves.

"That design...(in) my impression and my first look is
this is a bigger version of a Safeway building at
Ocean Market (Safeway's former site in Milpitas), or
(Safeways) I saw in San Francisco," Esteves said.

He added the station's design should provide a lot of
difference from any Safeway.

"Because it really resembles a (Safeway)," the mayor
said. "That's the smaller scale, this could be a
bigger scale."

Later, echoing the mayor's comments, Councilman
Armando Gomez said he wanted to make sure that
Milpitas "wasn't getting the short end of the stick in
terms of design."

With regard to other rapid transit stations planned
for the county, Gomez urged city staff to make sure
Milpitas' station would have "a lot of the nicer
elements" in its design.

Felix Reliford, interim Milpitas planning director,
told council members that the station was "above and
beyond" other stations in terms of design.

"It's appealing. It invites people to come in. It's
attractive," Reliford said. "...We think it fits the
character of Milpitas...and it fits pretty well into
the proposed (Milpitas Transit Plan.)"

Reliford added the station would incorporate trees,
landscaping and a plaza area.

Architect Naor also reassured the council that
Milpitas' station was unique. And he added its design
was not based on any supermarket chain.

"First of all let me just mention architecture is a
hazardous trade, and when people call one of our
stations (a) Safeway it's one of those direct
daggers...," Naor said.

He added, "I can tell you that this is the station of
the highest quality...at local...and international
standards of design."

Naor said the station's high vaulted glass ceiling
would be different from other BART stations planned
for Santa Clara County.

"The sense of space is something that you won't have
at any of the other stations," he said, adding the
large amount of glass covering the station could be
used to display public artwork.

Councilwoman Althea Polanski was less concerned about
the station's design, and more concerned about whether
VTA would actually build BART here.

"I know that BART and VTA (are) having financial
difficulties," she said. "I don't have this confidence
that we're going to see all of these stations,
especially in my lifetime..."

She added what kind of reassurance could VTA give to
Milpitas residents that BART would arrive.

Marian Lee-Skowronek, VTA's principal transportation
planner, responded by saying that funds were still
being sought by the transit agency.

"We have 80 percent of the capital funding for the
project. We are still working on getting (a Federal
Transportation Administration) grant for $750
million," Lee-Skowronek said.

She added VTA would have a better idea of the
project's funding situation by mid-2008.

"We continue to have a (funding) shortfall on the
operations and maintenance of the project,"
Lee-Skowronek said. "VTA is currently trying to figure
out how to find the funding for not just the BART
project, but for all of the projects in Measure A."

In a separate, but related May 1 city council item,
the council also reviewed the configuration of the
Montague/Capitol BART station.

Under that item, Vice Mayor Bob Livengood was critical
of VTA's proposal to add a second parking structure on
the north side of Montague Expressway near GreatMall,
an element that was not in previous design plans.

In part, Livengood suggested a proposed north side
parking structure could eliminate high-density
residential buildings initially planned for the area.

In addition, Livengood said it would be difficult for
people to gain direct access from a proposed south
side parking structure and BART station to the
GreatMall, even though a pedestrian overcrossing is
planned for Montague Expressway near Piper Drive.

In response, Lee-Skowronek told council members that
the north parking structure was added due to a
projected increase in ridership over 20 years.

But Livengood said a second parking structure would
add to project costs.

"It seems to me that you can build that pedestrian
overcrossing without building that new parking
structure," he said.

Council members were happy about the progress on other
points.

That included elimination of an aerial alignment track
that would not be built in the Milpitas BART station
an element VTA previously indicated would save the
transit agency up to $75 million in construction
costs.

At the end of the meeting, the council unanimously
approved a draft letter to be sent to VTA that stated
several requests City of Milpitas wanted to see
included in its BART station project.

Requests included having the BART project conform to
the city's transit area plan; keeping a pedestrian
overcrossing at Montague near Piper Drive; hold off
putting in a north parking structure; relocate train
tracks on the north side of Montague; and give further
study to center versus side platform options for the
city's retained-cut BART station.

___________________

JamBoi: Jammy, The Sacred Cow Slayer
The Green Parties' #1 Blogger
http://dailyJam.blogspot.com

"To the brave belong all things"
Celt's invading Etrusca reply to nervous Romans around 400BC

"Live humbly, laugh often and love unconditionally" (anon)


      ____________________________________________________________________________________Fussy? Opinionated? Impossible to please? Perfect.  Join Yahoo!'s user panel and lay it on us. http://surveylink.yahoo.com/gmrs/yahoo_panel_invite.asp?a=7