Nic Ouroussoff squawks. Roberta Smith blechs. Still, 2 Columbus Circle, new home of the Museum of Arts and Design is a cause for celebration, as a new art space (be warned: the work inside is hit and miss) poised to guss up our favorite traffic circle—notice how I stifled the word mall. The makeover is pretty in a tame, inoffensive way that makes me long for the contentiousness of the old Edward Durrell Stone facade, though it gets points for at least getting me to go inside–something I never did in its previous incarnations. Part of me wishes they ‘d cleaned up the old spot (and c’mon guys, bring back the subway entrance on its block—since it’s been closed my life has been a living hell) and let the Venetian-palazzo-whatever speak for itself. I suppose we should be grateful they didn’t demolish it, but Brad Cloepfil’s new clothes are not all that. Time will crawl …