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Municipal Parking Garage

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1940–1941, Hassel T. Hicks. Southwest corner of Howard and McDowell sts.

Strategically located near the southern entrance to downtown, this four-level concrete parking structure helped alleviate Welch's chronic congestion by providing spaces for 425 cars. A plaque inside the open entrance attests to the fact that it is reputedly the first municipally owned and operated parking structure in the United States. As with many nearby structures, the railroad tracks and the nearby Tug River determined the building's unusual footprint. As designed and built, the garage's streamlined planes were devoid of extraneous ornamentation. Now, decorative diagonal wooden braces that resemble half timbering are affixed to the deck walls. They provide a Tudor Revival or rustic flavor, neither of which accords with the original purpose or design. The garage, seldom full these days, also houses the Chamber of Commerce.

Writing Credits

Author: 
S. Allen Chambers Jr.
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Citation

S. Allen Chambers Jr., "Municipal Parking Garage", [Welch, West Virginia], SAH Archipedia, eds. Gabrielle Esperdy and Karen Kingsley, Charlottesville: UVaP, 2012—, http://sah-archipedia.org/buildings/WV-01-MD15.

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