FAIRHOPE, AL — The fictional design review for Baldwin Square’s proposed exterior upgrades entered its decisive phase Tuesday as consultants presented fourteen historically appropriate shades of beige.
The shopping center’s new owner has promised improvements to storefronts and other exterior features. Fairhope responded by requesting proof that nothing new would appear unexpectedly new.
“We welcome investment,” said imaginary aesthetic coordinator Beige Ann Trim. “We simply need to know whether the proposed beige is respectful beige or attention-seeking beige.”
The palette begins with Oyster Whisper, moves through Heirloom Oatmeal and concludes with a daring swatch labeled Almost Taupe.
Color with appropriate restraint
Reviewers rejected one sample after it appeared visibly different from the wall beside it.
Another was returned for containing an undertone that could be interpreted as confidence.
The preferred color, Heritage Ecru No. 7, was described as warm enough to attract shoppers but reserved enough to make them wonder whether the building had been painted at all.
“The goal is improvement without evidence,” Trim explained. “Ideally, residents will say the center looks much better and then become unable to identify why.”
Consultants also proposed new awnings. The first design projected thirty-six inches from the façade and was considered excessively three-dimensional. A revised awning will be painted directly onto the wall.
Public comment favors old beige
Several residents urged the owner to preserve the existing beige because they had become accustomed to not noticing it.
“That beige has character,” said fictional longtime shopper Eula Neutral. “It has faded unevenly through hurricanes, pollen seasons and at least four frozen-yogurt concepts.”
Others supported change but asked the developer to retain one original beige panel for historical interpretation.
The panel could be displayed beneath a small plaque reading COMMERCIAL STUCCO, CIRCA A WHILE AGO.
Landscaping plans call for live oaks, low shrubs and ornamental grasses selected to complement every color without forming an opinion.
No schedule announced
The owner has not announced a construction schedule, which reviewers praised as consistent with Fairhope’s traditional approach to anticipation.
Before work begins, the palette will be evaluated at sunrise, noon, sunset, during pollen season and beneath the emotional lighting of a neighborhood Facebook discussion.
If approved, painters may apply a test patch no larger than one square foot. That patch will then undergo a six-month period of public acclimation.
At press time, the committee had narrowed the selection to two colors that appeared identical.
Trim denied this, explaining that one was “a beige with civic humility” and the other was “basically Mobile.”