Sad preservation loss

I extend my sincere condolences to all the forward-looking people who were involved in trying to save the beautiful Peoples Bank building.

You get an “A” for effort.

Unfortunately, this community has not evolved to the degree many of us felt it had. If a project is not going to make a lot of money for someone, or if it does not involve horses, basketball or bourbon, it gets shoved way down the list of priorities.

It may be a significant architectural treasure, but if it is not colonial or bilaterally symmetric, it is ignored. How sad. Provincialism is alive and well.

I am also perplexed that when the deal was made with Krikorian Premiere Theaters, why weren’t they assigned the task and the costs of relocating the building or incorporating it into their project?

Why is a theater mega-plex even appropriate for a corner that is already severely congested and overbuilt? Ditto 500 South Upper and Virginia Avenue and South Limestone.

The answer, of course, is money, the only concern of the movers and the shakers.

So Lexington, rest easy with your marriages to the Krikorians and the Webb Companies. You’re getting what you deserve.

This story was originally published October 4, 2017 at 6:57 PM with the headline "Sad preservation loss."