| CrestedSaguaro |
Sep 29, 2022 9:11 PM |
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Originally Posted by PHX31
(Post 9746420)
Does anyone have an azcentral subscription and can post what is said in the new article about the Duke's building on the SWC of 7th Ave & Thomas?
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They scrapped the Raising Cane's and it will be be saved and become a mixed-use marketplace :tup:
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This is what's next for the beloved Duke Photography building. Hint: not Raising Cane's
Sofia Krusmark
Arizona Republic
The beloved Duke Photography building in Phoenix will no longer become a Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers restaurant.
The Duke family sold the building, which dates to 1947 and is near the southwest corner of Seventh Avenue and Thomas Road, for $2 million to local investor and developer Aaron Klusman, it was reported in January 2021.
Klusman's original plan was to replace the Duke's building with Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers, a fast-food restaurant.
Those plans have changed.
The building will not be torn down. Instead, it's slated to be transformed into a neighborhood market and gathering spot, said Troy Vincent, the lead architect of the project and a partner at 180 Degrees Design + Build in Phoenix.
Here's the latest on the future of the Duke Photography building.
The original Raising Cane's plan
The original plan was to replace The Duke Photography building with a Raising Cane's restaurant, which would have been a tenant of Klusman's.
Raising Cane's is based in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and has locations nationwide including more than a dozen in metro Phoenix.
According to the restaurant's original permit request, the plan was to demolish the building before selling the land to Raising Cane's. The company chose the Duke Photography property for its proximity to St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center and Phoenix College.
Why Raising Cane's won't replace Duke Photography
News of the plan circulated, triggering concerns in the community. The Encanto-Palmcroft, F.Q. Story and Willo historic neighborhood associations opposed the restaurant due to traffic concerns.
Vincent told The Republic that Klusman's primary reason for the change in plans was the neighbors' opposition.
“He did the right thing. He stopped and he listened,” Vincent said. “He said, ‘Let’s look at what we can do with the Duke.’"
The Republic has reached out to Klusman for comment.
Here's what will happen to the Duke Photography building and sign
The Dukes established their photography business in 1950, taking family portraits, senior photos and recording other milestones. The business moved to 5210 N. Central Ave. in 2021.
Now, the iconic Duke Photography sign will remain and plans call for the building to be adapted into a mixed-use space called The Duke Its marketplace and grocery store will blend with the neighborhood and allow easy pedestrian access.
“We know the iconic nature of what the building is," Vincent said. "The architecture, quite honestly, is nothing to tout. It’s not the building itself, it’s the place. What we started to look at is, 'how we can capture the place?'"
"We began to see through the needs of the neighborhood, the needs of retail and the history. We really focused on preserving that. We want to create a place that is accessible by the community. A lot of it by foot, a lot of it by a relaxed, connected feel,” Vincent said.
Plans for The Duke call for a lounge area, cafe and market selling deli sandwiches and pizza.
Other proposed changes include bike racks shaped like the Duke logo, that logo painted on the building and three large canopies extending from the building to create a market feel.
Completion is forecast for the third or fourth quarter of 2023.
The vision behind The Duke
The architecture firm in charge of the project, 180 Degrees Design + Build, has done several projects in Phoenix, including the Provision Coffee and The Original ChopShop complex at 32nd Street and Campbell Avenue and the Hazel Hare Center for Plant Science at the Desert Botanical Garden.
One of the architects who will work on The Duke talked about the vision for the project.
“It will be focused on the livelihood of the neighborhood,” said Guillaume Evain, a 180 Degrees architect and lead designer of the project.
“From the 1950s when this building was built, it was designed to be a food market with neighborhood retails, a drugstore and a shoe store. We want to bring back its original intent. It was built for a community.”
“If this can be an example for other developers to create spaces that are more approachable and have better outdoor use," Evain said. "that would be a huge, huge win for us too.”
Source: azcentral.com https://www.azcentral.com/story/ente...x/10442445002/
Reach the reporter at sofia.krusmark@gannett.com. Follow her on Instagram @sofia.krusmark.
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