Across the United States, there are an estimated 700 million to 2 billion parking spaces, found in street-level parking lots, underground parking, and multistory parking garages. When it comes to the latter, these simple structures are often perceived as liminal spaces within major cities or suburban shopping centers, but creative architectural firms have realized their potential to be more than just concrete. These five architecturally stunning parking garages are as imaginative as they are practical.
T3 Parking Structure – Austin, Texas
Built in 2012 by Danze Blood Architects, the T3 Parking Structure in Austin, Texas, juts out of a steep hillside near a busy intersection. The three-level, helical garage features living green walls to blend into the surrounding environment and a green roof that collects water for irrigation, while also serving as an urban habitat for wildlife. The eco-friendly blueprint was a response to local residents’ concerns that the structure would negatively impact the neighborhood, so the design firm decided to make nature center stage. The result is a light-filled lot that has won several architecture awards, including the 2014 Chicago Athenaeum Award.
Helix Garage – Lexington, Kentucky
In 2014, design firm Pohl Rosa Pohl was challenged to save the unsightly Helix Garage in downtown Lexington from demolition. Using nearly translucent steel panels on vertical steel scaffolding and LED backlighting, the team added an innovative geometric façade that completely transformed the structure, which is fitted with 389 parking spaces. At night, the rectangles change colors to reflect the holidays or special occasions, which also makes the garage interior glow. It was a resounding success: What was once an eyesore is now a talking point in the community.
City View Garage – Miami, Florida
Erected in 2015 in Miami’s Design District, the seven-story City View Garage, with 599 parking spaces and ground-level retail stores, was designed by IwamotoScott Architecture. The garage faces a busy freeway and features a metal screen with folded aluminum apertures to create a geometric façade that radiates when the sun reflects off it. Another bonus of the design is that it allows for a steady airflow stream that helps keep the garage cool on hot, humid days by the Florida coast.
10th & Wyandotte Garage – Kansas City, Missouri
From a distance, the patterned exterior of the 10th and Wyandotte Garage, designed by Kansas City architecture firm BNIM in 2016, appears to look like latticed concrete walls. But upon further inspection, you’ll see colored “eyes” staring back at you. The nearly 600 ceramic inserts were inspired by fossils found in nature, and the outcome is a mesmerizing fusion of art and architecture. The design team worked together with local artist Andy Brayman, who founded the Matter Factory, a collective that uses architectural software to bring their creative visions to life and develop building materials.
Michigan Theatre – Detroit, Michigan
Once a 4,000-seat concert hall that hosted many black-tie events, the Michigan Theatre in Detroit was gutted in 1977 to make room for a 160-space garage for employees at the Michigan Building next door. Remnants of the elegant rotunda and painted walls of the Renaissance Revival-style theater that was built in 1926 are still evident throughout the structure, allowing drivers to still make out pieces of the past. The use of the space as a parking garage became a clever way to preserve the landmark’s legacy in the Motor City after it was left to decay when the theater closed.
Are there any architecturally interesting parking structures in your city? Share your favorite, and you might see it in a future article!
Featured Stories
More from our network
Daily Passport is part of Optimism, which publishes content that uplifts, informs, and inspires.
