INVERNESS COMMUNITY
RETHINK & REDEFINE CENTRAL AVE
MAIN STREET FACADES
Our objectives are (1) to improve the connection between Inverness businesses and consumers, and (2) to promote a sense of community pride and longevity, ensuring that visitors and residents alike are reminded, walking down Central Avenue, that this is a town with a long history and lasting, vibrant future. The buildings and businesses of Inverness should communicate the pride, site context authenticity, diligence/conscientiousnesssite context and artistry of Invernessers themselves. These guidelines are designed to achieve those objectives while also taking into consideration aesthetic, functional, economic and environmental factors. The guidelines will address such matters as ornamentation, colour schemes, material choices, landscaping elements, signage, lighting, and entry/access. There is no single, uniform style that defines Inverness: the history of architecture in this town is as diverse as the history and cultures of the people who have inhabited it. The town boomed with the development of the coal mines, and the land side of Central Avenue was lined with a solid front of business facades, flush with the sidewalk. The
CONCEPT PLANNING
ENTRY LEVEL
business exteriors revealed large window displays and included front steps on which to perch, mingle and loiter. The first aspect invited entrance, enticing the customer inside the store with a glimpse of what it contained, and the second encouraged street-side interaction, providing a place for meeting and conversation. Rather than impose an arbitrary design era on the current businesses of Inverness, given the diversity of its history, an authentic and continued reflection of that diversity is encouraged. The facade perimeters will help establish coherence and cohesion within that diversity, and will apply equally to all businesses, from those designed in the ornamental Queen Anne style to those designed in a more understated modern style. Thematic elements, such as the use of wrought iron (a strong but beautiful material that we feel reflects Invernesss industrial heritage and cultural legacy), will be utilized. Inspiring, uniting and superceding these guidelines is a single principle: Honour the origins and historical character of each building; wherever possible retain and restore those details.
VICTORIAN STYLES
LARGE GLAZING
LOCAL VERNACULAR
ARCHITECTURAL STYLES
FACADE DEPTH
E X I S T I N G
e left, a plan of old Mine No. 1 is laid Define Gateways with unique elements such as landscaping, he town of Inverness to demonstrate the street trees, infrstructure upgrades and signage of these operations. Shown here is only ion of the larger extents, as seen in the ous figure. The image above is a perspeciew looking east toward theconsolidate Inverness Look for opportunities to parking and encourage line. The mines followedfoot visitors to explore of the direction the community on ams, which sloped downward at angles STREETSCAPE ng from 15 to 30 degrees and reaching up 00 metres below the surface and beneath cean floor.
A
PARK
2.5M
A
The Hoff
Central Avenue
Central
Give priority to pedestrians at important intersections to improve the connectivity of the sidewalk/ trail network
See cross section below
EXAMPLES OF COMMUNITY DESIGN STANDARDS
Organize and manage parking to enhance the quality of the pedesrian environment and prioritize the movement of people over vehicles.
B
2 LANES
6.5M
PARK
WALK
2.5M 1.5M
Undesireable front yard parking
P R O P O S E D
A
WALK
B
2 LANES
6.5M
Locate parking to side or rear of buildings
PARK
2.5M
1M
WALK
3M
Removing on-street parking on the west side of Central Ave. and shifting the centre line to the west could allow for wider sidewalks on the east side and the addition of sidewalks on the west side. Investing in undergrounding utiltiies would remove obstacles from the pedestrian environement, beautify the street and reduce the incidence of interuptions to services such as electricity and internet due to weather.
Share parking among multiple businesses/organizations to maximize efficient use of land
