Comments on: West Courthouse Square: The 20-Story Office Building Never Built

By: At Home in Decatur

At Home in Decatur — Thu, 22 Aug 2013 16:11:43 +0000

I have old memories of parties with lots of alcohol and young people on the roof of a 32-story apartment building I lived in once. The roof had a concrete wall around it but no fence. Folks sat on the wall drinks in hand. The Mom in me is shuddering involuntarily at even the memory.

By: DrB

DrB — Thu, 22 Aug 2013 15:38:10 +0000

When I was in college (and grad school), I found that if you learn how buildings “work” well enough and where to look, 1) you can always find a way to the roof (access door, stair, ladder) and 2) 50% of the buildings tend to leave it unlocked …

By: Larkspur

Larkspur — Thu, 22 Aug 2013 03:48:52 +0000

Interesting that Project No. 1 included expansion of Decatur High School. If only they had properly projected enrollment into the 21 st century and done a larger expansion.

By: nelliebelle1197

nelliebelle1197 — Wed, 21 Aug 2013 22:29:25 +0000

Do happen to have old city photos that you have shared anywhere?

By: Chris Billingsley

Chris Billingsley — Wed, 21 Aug 2013 22:12:58 +0000

Thanks Bull. I grew up on Ponce Place so I spent a lot of time at First National. Believe it or not, there was a time when you could easily get on the roof. We called it “Looking Around”. Take the cool elevators you remember to the top floor, go around the corner and down the hall, enter the stairwell and for some crazy reason,the door to the roof was always unlocked! We would drop “Super Balls” off the top to see if it would bounce back. None of them made it past the third story on the rebound but it sure was fun. Kids today? No fancy computer or cell phone could match the fun of being on the roof of a ten story building with no adults around.
Can you imagine today the DM drama if kids could access the roof of our tallest buildings today for fun?