Utah Heritage Foundation

Does it seem like a long time since the city bought the Fisher Mansion and opened it up for a tour?  It hasn’t been idle time where nothing’s been happening.  The long awaited historic structures report has been completed by CRSA, providing much needed information to future users about what may be necessary to bring the mansion up to building and seismic code, city LEED compliance, and return it to its historic glory.

As one of the handful of fabulous residential structures designed by Utah architect and German native Richard K.A. Kletting, the 1893 home to Albert Fisher served as his base of operation near what would become one of the largest breweries in the state until it sold to Anheiser-Busch.  The mansion was passed on from the family to the Catholic Diocese and operated as its last us as the St. Mary’s Home for Men.  The Fisher Mansion remained surprisingly intact since the family’s departure in 1944, yet suffered from a lack of maintenance and severe weather deterioration.

Still, the opportunity exists to rehabilitate a signature landmark of Salt Lake City.  The question now is – for what purpose?  A Request for Proposals is currently being prepared and will soon be on the street seeking interest.

In th

UTAH, SALT LAKE COUNTY,
Altadena Apartments,
310 S. 300 E.,
Salt Lake City,  09001291,
LISTED, 1/27/10

UTAH, SALT LAKE COUNTY,
Sampson Apartments,
276 E. 300 S.,
Salt Lake City,  09001292,
LISTED, 1/27/10

 

UTAH, SAN JUAN COUNTY,
Neck and Cabin Springs Grazing Area,
Grand View Point Rd.
Moab, 09001108,
LISTED, 12/18/09

The National Preservation Institute, a nonprofit organization founded in 1980, educates those involved in the management, preservation, and stewardship of our cultural heritage. The 2010 National Preservation Institute seminar schedule is available online at www.npi.org. The 2010 NPI News Release includes the calendar and seminar descriptions www.npi.org/NewsRelease2010.pdf.

 Advance registration rate available through March 17, 2010

 Landscape Preservation: An Introduction

Free Photography Workshop

Utah Heritage Foundation will hold a workshop teaching the basics of architectural photography in preparation for our For the Love of MOD Mid-Century Modern Photography Contest.  Taking place in Memorial House in Memory Grove Park (485 North Canyon Road, Salt Lake City) on Saturday, February 6 at 10:00 AM, this workshop will be taught by retired University of Utah College of Architecture + Planning Professor Peter Goss.  The workshop is free and is open to the public.

Forsey's Furniture Galleries

 

The narrow and tall, striking red sandstone building at 22 East 100 South known as the “Brownstone Building” has seen more than its share of mall construction over the decades.  But current owner Bill Campbell isn’t waiting for City Creek Center to be completed to ensure that the historic building he owns will be around for decades to come as he has signed a preservation easement with Utah Heritage Foundation to protect the property in perpetuity.

Originally built as the Utah Commercial & Savings Bank Building by Francis Armstrong in 1890, the three-story building is one of the rare examples of Richardsonian Romanesque architecture in the state of Utah, as seen in the photo at left (Courtesy Utah State Historical Society).   Bank President Armstrong was an energetic entrepreneur who after a short time working in Brigham Young’s flour mill at the bottom of Parley’s Canyon, formed a lumber mill and general contracting business known as Taylor, Romney and Armstrong Co.  He went on to serve in county government from 1881 until 1886 when he was elected Mayor of Salt Lake City.

Architect Richard K.A. Kletting, “Dean of Utah Architects,” served as designer for the building.  Expectations were high as one journalist predicted that upon its completion it would be “the finest front of any building in Utah.”  Every floor is custom designed and reflected on the exterior by the window patterns.   The red sandstone is intricately carved with leaf and basketweave designs on projecting elements.  The overall effect of the building’s design is one of order and strength, principles made popular by H.H. Richardson in some of the best surviving examples of the Richardsonian Romanesque style in Chicago, Boston, and New York.

Today, the Utah

SENIOR PLANNER - HISTORIC PRESERVATION

Salt Lake City Planning & Zoning Division

$4152 - $5437 mo.

The Senior Planner leads the preservation team of the Planning Division of Salt Lake City Corporation.  Historic Preservation is a citywide program that is guided by the Salt Lake City Historic Preservation Plan.  The main duty of the Senior Planner will be to implement this plan, provide staff assistance to the Historic Landmarks Commission, and build the connections and resources necessary to do so.  The Plan includes development of new preservation tools, public education, continuing education for staff and commission, and updating procedures, policies and review tools.

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This week on the 100 block of State Street in downtown Salt Lake City, the Radio City Lounge (147 S. State St.) and its neighboring two story commercial building were demolished to make way for a reported UTA bus transfer station.  Out of historic context for several decades since the construction of the commercial building on 200 South and State Street and the Wallace Bennett Federal Building in the 1970s, the buildings have long been rumored to be targets for demolition, not preservation.  Now we have more space for traffic, not businesses.  And not on streets where downtown traffic should exist, but on what was (or maybe still is) private property.

The Radio City Lounge had a great history as a historic bar in a historic building that should be recognized.  In a town that has a short and unknown history otherwise of LGBT establishments, the Radio City Lounge was the standout.  There are certainly others that have come after, and we will republish that information here soon.  But let's remember Radio City Lounge when we need to rally to save the next important LGBT site in Utah.

Read the article Radio City Lounge Closes in Q Salt Lake.

See a photo of the neon sign on the building before demolition.

The few remaining buildings in downtown Salt Lake City associated with the rich history of the Jewish community that ran numerous successful businesses and built sizable religious structures are quickly disappearing.  The latest to be slated for demolition is the Groshel Cash Register Building on the 200 block of State Street which will be redeveloped in a new housing project.  More information is needed about how Salt Lake City's Jewish community helped build the city over time.  That's why it's exciting that the Jewish-American Society for Historical Preservation of New York is recognizing the roots of the religion in Salt Lake, with hopes that it will inspire and excite additional research and documentation into this important history and additional preservation for the future.

 

Fisher Mansion Open House

1206 West 200 South, Salt Lake City