So much delight in so little space... but it's illegal almost everywhere! French Quarter balconies are rarely much over 3 feet deep, but look at all the gardening this building's occupant is doing on this balcony! And what a Gift to the Street! I’ll keep repeating this as long as I’m doing urbanism: it is in the best interest of every city in hot climates to allow galleries and balconies to encroach into the street right-of-way, giving the gift of shade to the street for free to anyone walking by.
The balconies and galleries of New Orleans are possible only because the city allows them to extend over the property line, which is at or near the building wall. Other cities such as Lafayette, Louisiana have recovered this ancient pattern using an Indemnification Agreement which basically says that the city will not hold building owners liable for any damages resulting from their galleries or balconies encroaching upon public right-of-way. My colleague Nathan Norris, both an urbanist and an attorney, was instrumental in getting this passed in Lafayette and would be a good resource to consult on how to get it done in your town. This benefits the city in many ways and prevents "slip & fall" lawsuits on the sidewalk if it were private, which would never work.
The garden room atop this gallery is a lush place to sit and watch life go by on the street, and is a visual Gift to the Street, but the vines hanging several feet below help cool the sidewalk space both by shade and transpiration of water vapor.
This building gets several things naturally right: The balcony gardens help cool the street, physically to a degree, but also psychologically, and they entice humans out to care for them. Glass/wall proportion daylights with no need for tinted glass & it ventilates well. But visualize this with no encroachment: this building and all its neighbors would be positively boring without them.
Encourage exuberance in places like an upper gallery where people can cultivate a green envelope or a gallery garden to their heart's content. Great for Walk Appeal, great for cooling the street, great for business as well; who wouldn't want to run a shop under this gallery?
