Salt Lake City: Official Development News Thread - Part 5

[Old&New]

Originally Posted by Atlas

The mezzanine and hallway look salvageable but the auditorium is mostly gone except for the ceiling, like I said before. If a majority of these countless missing adornments are in some warehouse somewhere and not lost forever, that would go a long way to changing my opinion.

They are all easily replicated with 3D Printing.

[i2theSKY]

Originally Posted by Atlas

SLC requires 0.5 parking spaces per unit downtown, so they had to have at least 200 spaces in their garage. Instead of having a giant parking podium, which would be an eyesore (see Sundial Tower), they put it behind the tower and put a public park on top of it.

If it were possible to have both projects peacefully exist by including podium parking, I would be willing to give the theater group a shot at restoring the theater. Yes we would lose the park but keep the theater and most likely gain a new tallest due to the podium. Understandably podium parking can be controversial due to appearance but if designed properly they don't look half bad. Obviously this is easier said than done and may not even be a possibility due to a multitude of factors. I know the Hines group says they looked at all angles to include the theater but nothing penciled out.

[Makid]

Originally Posted by Old&New

They are all easily replicated with 3D Printing.

Playing Devil's Advocate here:

As the missing items can all be replicated using 3D printing, couldn't the whole theater be rebuilt using the same process?

Those that wish to preserve the theater could purchase land that would be appropriate for a theater like this, with adequate parking, seismic controls, build a shell for the theater and then just use the same 3D printing to restore the whole theater. They could possibly even buy most of the old items from within the existing theater that aren't slated to be reused at a discount if not free. This could also include the old masonry and much of the ceiling features, excluding the Tiffany skylight. The same could be said for the foyer items and flooring. Doing this would probably cost less than $30 Million, would have the theater preserved, and allow for a multitude of uses rather than just a SLC theater for Sundance.

Additionally, just reaching out to the Developer and the Demolition Company would probably lead to a greater reuse and salvage of the other items including the old supports to allow for a near fully recreation of the theater.

In fact, I think doing the above and talking with the City Council/RDA could have provided a possible site for the theater near the Central Station RDA area.

Imagine if someone who was into preservation had thought about alternatives. Nearly Free if not Free land from the RDA, Developer assistance in additional salvaging operations, free delivery of the old masonry and timbers to the new location.

The developer would even qualify for a higher LEED rating due to the massive amount of reuse from the previous structure.

Instead of this, we get people chaining themselves to doors, breaking into buildings, and people causing near chaos at times all in a vain attempt to stop something that cannot legally be stopped.

Now, it is not to late for this to happen, someone can take the lead on this and work with the City and Developer around a formalized plan that is contingent upon a reuse and rehabilitation agreement by the preservation group. If this were to happen, I would gladly contribute both funds and time to assist with this project.

[RC14]

^
Your plan would be wonderful and is exactly what should happen at this point.

[bob rulz]

The theater was a beautiful building. Emphasis on was. I still think the time to save it was 20 years ago.

Originally Posted by Old&New

You only show the worst picture.

I mean, this is literally the theater part of the theater. I think that's the most important part.

[i2theSKY]

Originally Posted by Makid

Playing Devil's Advocate here:

As the missing items can all be replicated using 3D printing, couldn't the whole theater be rebuilt using the same process?

Those that wish to preserve the theater could purchase land that would be appropriate for a theater like this, with adequate parking, seismic controls, build a shell for the theater and then just use the same 3D printing to restore the whole theater. They could possibly even buy most of the old items from within the existing theater that aren't slated to be reused at a discount if not free. This could also include the old masonry and much of the ceiling features, excluding the Tiffany skylight. The same could be said for the foyer items and flooring. Doing this would probably cost less than $30 Million, would have the theater preserved, and allow for a multitude of uses rather than just a SLC theater for Sundance.

Additionally, just reaching out to the Developer and the Demolition Company would probably lead to a greater reuse and salvage of the other items including the old supports to allow for a near fully recreation of the theater.

In fact, I think doing the above and talking with the City Council/RDA could have provided a possible site for the theater near the Central Station RDA area.

Imagine if someone who was into preservation had thought about alternatives. Nearly Free if not Free land from the RDA, Developer assistance in additional salvaging operations, free delivery of the old masonry and timbers to the new location.

The developer would even qualify for a higher LEED rating due to the massive amount of reuse from the previous structure.

Instead of this, we get people chaining themselves to doors, breaking into buildings, and people causing near chaos at times all in a vain attempt to stop something that cannot legally be stopped.

Now, it is not to late for this to happen, someone can take the lead on this and work with the City and Developer around a formalized plan that is contingent upon a reuse and rehabilitation agreement by the preservation group. If this were to happen, I would gladly contribute both funds and time to assist with this project.

You should forward this to Michael Valentine, AKA the chains, hat and glasses guy.

[Schmoe]

Originally Posted by meman

Also has anyone heard if the Astra tower has an estimated ground breaking date?

I think site/utilities work begins in Sept. There have been a bunch of little hangups, from legal issues, to uncovering buried concrete. Plus I think I heard Rocky Mountain Power is being difficult about where they need to tie into existing power.

I'm assured things are moving, just not as quickly as hoped. I was told they are close to locking down the debt, but may have lost an equity investor that will need to be replaced. That may not be easy as projects like this are expensive and built for longer-term returns. I'm hoping its location in an opportunity zone (like most of downtown) can help attract the right investor.

My contact joked about building taller to improve returns, which got me excited. But he was quick to say that lenders especially may not buy off on the additional units for a trailblazing tower.

[rockies]

I didn't know the theater was in that bad of shape omg... it already looks like a parking garage

[Comrade]

I love you all but the quicker we get through this theater project the better. I am tired of hearing about it. It's been sitting there as a potential development since I joined the forum nearly 20 fucking years ago (holy fuck) and I'm done. Demolish it. Rebuild it. Renovate it. Move it. JUST DO IT.

[Boz]

^^^^

[bob rulz]

When Comrade is voting to move on from a historic building, you know it's in bad shape.

[BretUtah]

Does anyone know if C.W. Urban changed the name of theBirdie to theRandi?

[Blah_Amazing]

Originally Posted by BretUtah

Does anyone know if C.W. Urban changed the name of theBirdie to theRandi?

Yes, here is the link to the website: https://builtbycw.com/communities/therandi

[Orpheum]

Originally Posted by Comrade

I don't buy this. Brevity has never been Orpheum's strong suit.

Haha... OK I'll say it...

Couldn't that parking garage park become a liability? All it will take is one child to do something foolish.. get hurt, or worse, and they'll need to restrict access. Didn't that happen at the LDS Conference Center's rooftop gardens?

Also, there are no guarantees. The developer will raze the theater, then they could come back and say that their latest market study suggests the project no longer makes "economic sense" and they'll ask to scale it back to something that could've easily worked with the theater. Only it will be too late.

So just something to think about. It's entirely possible that what gets built will be different from the sparkly thing they're distracting us with right now.

Will the final result be worth the loss of the theater? I guess that's my main concern.

Also, I want to add that the whole reason I joined this forum back in 2003 was because the LDS church was getting ready to demolish the Promised Valley Playhouse, to replace it with a parking garage. I believe in preserving the history and character of our cities, and that was a personal gut punch because I performed there when I was a kid. I know we can't always make it work, but preservation should always be considered and encouraged when we’re talking about 100+ year old buildings. Comrade, to see that you've finally thrown your arms up in the air about this is a bit surprising, but I get it.. the city and developer knows that eventually everyone will get tired and move on...

[Old&New]

Originally Posted by Makid

Playing Devil's Advocate here:

As the missing items can all be replicated using 3D printing, couldn't the whole theater be rebuilt using the same process?

Those that wish to preserve the theater could purchase land that would be appropriate for a theater like this, with adequate parking, seismic controls, build a shell for the theater and then just use the same 3D printing to restore the whole theater. They could possibly even buy most of the old items from within the existing theater that aren't slated to be reused at a discount if not free. This could also include the old masonry and much of the ceiling features, excluding the Tiffany skylight. The same could be said for the foyer items and flooring. Doing this would probably cost less than $30 Million, would have the theater preserved, and allow for a multitude of uses rather than just a SLC theater for Sundance.

Additionally, just reaching out to the Developer and the Demolition Company would probably lead to a greater reuse and salvage of the other items including the old supports to allow for a near fully recreation of the theater.

In fact, I think doing the above and talking with the City Council/RDA could have provided a possible site for the theater near the Central Station RDA area.

Imagine if someone who was into preservation had thought about alternatives. Nearly Free if not Free land from the RDA, Developer assistance in additional salvaging operations, free delivery of the old masonry and timbers to the new location.

The developer would even qualify for a higher LEED rating due to the massive amount of reuse from the previous structure.

Instead of this, we get people chaining themselves to doors, breaking into buildings, and people causing near chaos at times all in a vain attempt to stop something that cannot legally be stopped.

Now, it is not to late for this to happen, someone can take the lead on this and work with the City and Developer around a formalized plan that is contingent upon a reuse and rehabilitation agreement by the preservation group. If this were to happen, I would gladly contribute both funds and time to assist with this project.

1.You can't 3D print Alaskan marble, or a tiffany chandelier.

2. This theater is already located IN the theatre district. Why would you want to build a new theater outside the theatre district? A theatre district needs a critical mass of theaters, and two theaters hardly makes a district.

3. The whole deal was corrupt, and the RDA is corrupt and should be shut down.

4. Location, Location, Location. Build the tower somewhere else.

Originally Posted by rockies

I didn't know the theater was in that bad of shape omg... it already looks like a parking garage

This was restored:



Why not this? Why not the Pantages?:

[Boz]

Um, because... money?

You got any spare?

[Atlas]

Originally Posted by Old&New

1.You can't 3D print Alaskan marble, or a tiffany chandelier.

Isn't this an argument against your previous post? A restored auditorium in this theatre would be 80% new materials and craftwork. Everything you would touch and almost everything you would see would be new, but made to look historic so that we can feel good about it: an expensive facsimile.

If you couldn't dig up the interior adornments from some warehouse somewhere, it would be much more artistically admirable to hire some top designers to completely reimagine the interior and integrate it with what remains. An artistic adaptive reuse, if you will.

[SLC PopPunk]

Demo permit has been filed and the new name for the Worthington Tower is Convexity Tower.

[RC14]

From Invetopia: Convexity is a measure of the curvature, or the degree of the curve, in the relationship between bond prices and bond yields.

From Marriam Wbster:
Definition of convexity
1: the quality or state of being convex
2: a convex surface or part

..makes sense.

[Atlas]

Nice! I think Convexity Properties is one of the investors, hence the name.

Also, 1000 posts!