 |
| click images for larger view |
The CTA is in the middle of
Red Ahead, a welcome $86 million upgrade of 10 Red Line stations - not total rebuilds, but extensive repairs and reconfiguration, with new lighting, doors and finishes. All in all, this has been an attractive alternative to such money-pit projects as the estimated $200 million+ cost of renovating the Wilson station. [The Chicago Sun-Times has recently been reporting on how money gushes like a geyser in the city's
Public Building Commission.]
At
Argyle,
as in the other stations in the rehab, there are new, handsome glass-filled entrance walls renovated platforms and canopies, and a clean, open design
, all accomplished, as in the other stations, during a fairly short six-week shutdown.
The only thing missing is color. About 20 years ago, as part of renovation that cost all of $250,000, the
Argyle station , which serves a neighborhood with a substantial Vietnamese, Cambodian and Chinese population, was repainted in colors associated in China with good luck and keeping away evil (red), and with longevity - also infidelity, jealousy and lust - take your pick (green).
The new Argyle is white, white, white. Very nice, very generic. Would it have cost that much more to give each station a bit of personality? There are a lot of blank walls, so maybe the color will come from the
$525,000 in artwork the CTA is currently considering for seven of the rehabbed stations, including Argyle.
0 comments :
Post a Comment