Good architecture leaves an impression on those who live, learn or linger within it, as this letter attests:
Dear Mr. Bubil: I appreciated your tribute/apology to Victor Lundy in the Nov. 3 Herald-Tribune. It brought back some recollections that I would like to share with you.
Alta Vista Elementary School's addition, designed in 1958 by architect Victor Lundy.
“In the spring of 1959, we Alta Vista third-graders were very excited about graduating from our portable to the ‘new wing’ for fourth grade the next year. We were not disappointed. The classrooms were large and airy. The stained-wood ceiling boards were supported by soaring, laminated wood beams. The outside wall virtually disappeared with sliding-glass doors onto an equally spacious patio. With no air-conditioning, it was like attending class out of doors every day. Our teachers probably had some difficulty keeping our attention from time to time. But it didn’t seem to bother Mrs. Griffith, Mr. Manning or Mr. Collins, with whom I shared those three years. They seemed as pleased to be in the ‘new wing’ as we were. If I recall correctly, Phil Hiss, chairman of the School Board at the time, would arrive on campus from time to time in a silver, gull-wing Mercedes.
The building as it appears today. Staff photo / Harold Bubil.
“It (is) sad to see the abominable things that have been done to that beautiful building. But the memories remain, and it is my compliment to Victor Lundy and the decision-makers of the time that part of my education at Alta Vista Elementary from 1959 to 1961 was a lifelong appreciation of architecture.”
— Douglas H. Taylor, Sarasota, November 2001
