I recently returned from a visit to the southwestern United States. Tucson, Arizona is a booming area with a modern, open downtown. Much like York – and many other places – Tucson is experiencing major sprawl. Where only four years ago barren desert and saguaro cacti stood, today they have been replaced by Home Depot and Circuit City and countless other retailers. Unlike York, however, the city limits of Tucson expand far beyond the city, so the tax base continues to grow.
Whenever I travel, I’m always attracted to the architecture. In Arizona, it was no different. Every place we went, I keenly observed the buildings around me. The architecture in the southwest is wonderful – cream adobe walls, red tile roofs, courtyards and plazas, etc. While you have to look hard to find a Spanish Colonial Revival home in York County (Elmwood has a few), you pretty much can look in any direction in Arizona and find the style. Add Mission Revival and Pueblo Revival, and you’ve just described about 90% of the buildings I observed. Certainly, there were a few modern, glass structures. But for the most part, the buildings were all the same. Don’t get me wrong – this added to the area’s charm.
But in York, we have such a diversity of architectural styles. Within a few blocks of Continental Square you can find everything from German Colonial and Georgian to high Victorian styles to modern and post-modern buildings. That is what makes York so unique. I’ve often referred to downtown York as an “open air gallery of architectural achievement,” and I think this diversity is not lost on visitors.
