The Architecture of Santa Fe

by Tommy Williams '11

Santa Fe has an amazing array of architecture, most prominently the Baroque styles of la Casa de Gobierno (The Government House), built from 1908 to 1915 by architect Francisco Ferrari. La Casa de Gobierno features massive, awe-inspiring columns and its sheer size makes you feel miniscule if you ever walk through the Plaza Mayo. It's a building of mixed descent, from both French and Italian origin. It embodies the old style of the architecture in Santa Fe, the ideas of the immigrants put into action.

Residential areas are very mixed in architectural style. From the neighborhood that I live in, there are many distinct styles. Pedro's house is a new and white modernistic house, whereas the house directly across is an older yellow building from around the 1950's made from ladrillos (bricks). All around the residential areas there is a mix of both styles and costs, as you see many larger house with lawns and fences next to smaller buildings in a worse condition.

In the non-residential areas all the buildings are cobbled together, making a mesh of both new and old. The new skyscrapers of brick and cement tower over the older edificios (buildings). The groupings of stores show the diversity of the city. A new sports store sits next to an older ferreterìa (hardware store). This is common throughout the city, as there is no real grouping of specific buildings, except in el centro (outside shopping mall).

The pride and joy of the people in Santa Fe is the Puente Colgante (Suspension Bridge). It's a massive red suspension bridge, much like the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. It was originally constructed in 1921 in the place of another bridge to cross the Setùbal Laguna (Setùbal Lake). It broke in 1983 due to a inundaciòn (flood) and was reconstructed in 2001, integrating much of the past elements that were previously used.

El Puente Colgante