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BOB EDWARDS, host:
The Midwest generally is not associated with cutting-edge architecture, but one town has a disproportionate share. Columbus, Indiana, is home to about 65 modern buildings. A preservation group is trying to get national historic landmark status for some of them. If the effort succeeds, this would be the first grouping of modern buildings to receive the honor. Janet Babin of Indiana Public Radio reports.
(SOUNDBITE OF TRUCK)
JANET BABIN reporting:
Driving to Columbus along Indiana's major north-south interstate, there are immediate visual clues that this is not your average small Midwestern town. Visitors here can't help but notice a modern-style glass-enclosed building two and a half stories high spanning two city blocks. When built in the early 1970s, the glass building, called The Commons, was unique.
Unidentified Child: Mommy ...(unintelligible) Dad's after me.
BABIN: Inside it's bright, airy and open. Children frolic on a playground while parents relax at the food court or visit the art gallery. This expansive public space was designed by Cesar Pelli, the architect who also designed the world's tallest buildings in...