On the commercial strip the supermarket windows contain no merchandise. There may be signs announcing the day's bargains, but they are to be read by pedestrians approaching from the parking lot. The building itself is set back from the highway and half hidden, as is most of the urban environment, by parked cars (Fig. 9). The vast parking lot is in front, not at the rear, since it is a symbol as well as a convenient e, The building is low because air conditioning demands low spates, and merchandising techniques discourage second floors; its architecture is neutral because it can hardly be seen from the road, both merchandise.