The North Carolina Legislative Building
The North Carolina state government web site says that
The North Carolina General Assembly met in the State Capitol from 1840 until the State Legislative Building was completed in January 1963. The home of the North Carolina General Assembly is unique in that it is devoted solely to the legislative branch of the state government. The Legislative Building contains facilities necessary for the efficient functioning of the General Assembly. The building includes not only Senate and House Chambers, but also committee rooms, offices for members, and space for clerical personnel. Throughout, provisions are made for easy access and observation of legislative procedures by the interested visitor.
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03/02/2008
Love the infinite perspective….
It also reflects that the inside of this building is almost as complicated to navigate as the process of making law.
The two chambers are almost the only things that are easy to find. (And well worth making the trip up the stairs to get to.)
If you have ever tried to find a specific room number, you could spend hours looking and still have to ask someone in one of the offices for directions. All four sections of the lower floors are almost identical and are not numbered in any logical sequence I’ve been able to figure out.
The boardrooms where the committees meet are especially hard to identify. Each one has a different room number on each entrance. Each room has 2 entrances and there 4 rooms ( I think, by the time I find the room I want I’m so confused that I may be under or over estimating the number of rooms.)
A proposed law has to make it out of committee to even be voted on in the chambers, so at least for me, it has never been to access the real legislative process.
Ah, I feel better now. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to get that out of system….
03/04/2008
Helen,
thanks for the thoughts. This place looks like a maze from above and from the side, so I guess it should come as no surprise that it is also that way inside.
You’ve now given me an interest in witnessing at least some part of the legislative process.
03/04/2008
The building really is something to see. Walk inside and you feel like you’ve stepped right into 1965. It’s surreal….they’ve preserved everything, even the “cone-shaped” light fixtures.