88 Broadway, New Haven, CT

88 Broadway was completed in 1951. Designed by Douglas Orr as a bank building, and still used that way today, it stands as a testament to the emerging car-culture of the 1950's. The building's "Auto Teller" massing and siting are a product of the relationship between building and automobile.



Part of an otherwise dense neighborhood, this building pushes its neighbors aside and finds some suburban space within which to reside. Its stone facade echoes the substantial vault held in the building's basement, a sign of security, and also loosely relates to the stone used on surrounding buildings.



A thick aluminum sign band announces the business within. Inside, a linear banking floor at the center is flanked by teller windows to the left and employee offices to the right. 88 Broadway, in its minimalism and spacious setting stands apart next to the historic church on the corner and marks a transition to another commercial zone up Broadway that includes a suburban-style shopping center and drive-in fast-food establishments.