04-07-2016, 01:20 PM
I really don't see stairs as pedestrian unfriendly (though not accessible -- need ramps or elevators for wheelchair access). The site has significant elevation changes and stairs are usually the best solution for those as they take much less space than ramps.
For pedestrians walking by along King St, the stairs and internal layout don't matter much anyway. If the building looks nice and the retaining wall can be eliminated (or made more interesting, with display windows, for example), not much else should matter.
For people living, working or shopping at King's Crossing, the layout will be relevant. Access to/from the street to/from retail and residential towers will be the key, but speed of access will need to be balanced with site design/architecture/landscaping to make it an attractive and pleasant place to live, work and shop. From that point of view, there are probably optimizations that can be done, but even for that, I really don't see it as being terrible.
For pedestrians walking by along King St, the stairs and internal layout don't matter much anyway. If the building looks nice and the retaining wall can be eliminated (or made more interesting, with display windows, for example), not much else should matter.
For people living, working or shopping at King's Crossing, the layout will be relevant. Access to/from the street to/from retail and residential towers will be the key, but speed of access will need to be balanced with site design/architecture/landscaping to make it an attractive and pleasant place to live, work and shop. From that point of view, there are probably optimizations that can be done, but even for that, I really don't see it as being terrible.