Why Build It Again?
What Do You Think You're Looking At? #82
In Gaithersburg, Maryland, there’s a proposed Wawa convenience store that, after several years has, apparently, finally begun construction. Here’s the building that used to sit on the site: a long-time antique store. (I don’t know how it began life; probably as something else, but likely some kind of store.)
Here’s a rendering of the Wawa, typical of the chain’s buildings. They’re also generally a gas station, with the pumps in front and the building set back from the road.
Well, what struck me was how generally similar the old building looks to the new one. The old building is sort of what the new one pretends to be. Why not keep it and adapt it? What underpins this kind of thing? What makes it profitable? Are old buildings that worthless?
Look at the old building. That empty space to the right could easily fit an old-fashioned pair of gas pumps. But Wawa won’t install a couple of old fashioned pumps. I guess this is what I mean when I say we shouldn’t treat the existing built environment as a blank slate. I don’t know the economics of this project, but wouldn’t it be cool if these commercial highway strips became pastiches of different buildings and eras, with the standard practice being re-use rather than demolition?
I don’t think I’d want any of that mandated by code, but look at what the process looks like already:
This came after public opposition to the site led to the development being stalled after a group of 14 community members filed an administrative appeal in the Montgomery County Circuit Court. The opponents of the site had stated that the Wawa does not align with MoCo’s master plan and would generate traffic and noise annoyances for residents in the surrounding areas. In April of 2021, Judge Donald Beachley struck down the appeal, clearing the way for development to begin.
This all reminds me of McDonalds tearing down perfectly serviceable locations from its previous building model—the mansard roof ones—with the new modern, squarish ones. Most have been remodeled, but a bunch have also been flat-out demolished to build brand new ones.
Why?
Related Reading:
What Do You Think You’re Looking At? #24
What Do You Think You’re Looking At? #28
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I also wonder if refurbishing is seen as an individual (or small business) thing, while demolishing and building new is seen as the corporate thing to do. Almost this sense of “the real movers and shakers in this world don’t waste time or money on remodeling” and maybe an idea that the way to demonstrate brand is to make everything in your business image, not fit yourself into other molds. (Also, I get the idea that it’s harder in a larger corporation to tackle the small details of a thing, easier to have a standard, almost bulk, way of doing something than it is to take each situation into special consideration -- even if that means a lot of costly wastefulness)
Final thought — Could the Henry Ford assembly line concept also be at play here to some degree? Making all stores to the same design so no customization is required? That sounds a bit laughable to me considering how different each BigBox store’s layout can be from any other’s in its chain (just because it’s another Safeway doesn’t mean I’ll be able to go right in and quickly put my hands on what I need!). But human logic is often a bit disjointed from itself: it’s possible that Henry Ford assembly-line logic influences the construction in spite of the fact that customization, local market needs, and store-personality logic influences the day-to-day layout and stocking decisions.
In the long run, it is cheaper to knock down a building than have to build within the constraints of a standing building. Makes no sense to me but I am not the one making the decisions.
Sheetz stations have 6-10 pumps. They get people on the ground with cheaper gas and then sell them LOTS of things from the store. They also need a big footprint for the store as they generally have a huge lunch crowd.