Gas station-convenience store in Charleston built to the street

A gas station-convenience store at Calhoun and Meeting Streets in downtown Charleston, SC meets the street in a way that serves pedestrians. Instead of occupying the center or rear of the lot, the Charleston store hugs a front corner of its property, helping define the sidewalk. Doug Farr, principal of Farr Associates, who is consulting on changes in development regulations in Chicago, thinks this arrangement could be applied to many gas station-convenience stores in urban neighborhoods that have sizable walking populations. At the street corner, the building could shelter people waiting for buses, especially if a canopy is added. The benefit for the store operator is more customers—a walk-up trade in addition to motorists. Timothy Keane, director of planning and neighborhoods for Charleston, says the Calhoun Street station represents his city’s approach in the late 1980s. Today Charleston would hope for a more highly developed solution, probably a corner store two stories high with an articulated entrance and display windows for pedestrians, and brick or siding on its exterior.Town Commons