Block 41 Redevelopment Project

As of the writing of this post, the 4th Avenue Theater has been completely demolished, and demolition of the neighboring Adams Building, another building that has stood for many decades, has begun. For those who have not been keeping up with the news and are wondering what the demolitions are all about, it is part of a $200 million dollar redevelopment project being called "Block 41" by the developer, Peach Holdings LLC. The new development is to include Class A office space, retail, a hotel, housing, parking, and entertainment venues. 

Though artist renderings of the project were unveiled last spring, an article from Alaska Public Media confirms that the final architectural design is yet to be decided. This comes as no surprise as the renderings that were unveiled, displayed above, feature both the 4th Avenue Theater and the Adams Building beneath what looks to be a four-story structure (an official floor count has thus far not been given, from what I can tell). This initially caused confusion as some on social media speculated that this meant the theater was not going to be demolished after all. Of course, we now know that preserving the theater or at least the facade was not part of the plan. But with the developer saying that "elements" of the theater will be recreated, it has left people guessing as to the final design. We do know that the neon letters of the theater's marquee were taken down and stored away before demolition commenced. Whether the letters will be brought back for a new sign remains to be seen.

In all, every building on this block — except for the former Key Bank tower, which is presently undergoing refurbishment — will be demolished. Downtown Anchorage has not seen a demolition site at this scale since the 1980s, when whole blocks were demolished to make way for numerous redevelopment projects, including Town Square, the 5th Avenue Mall, and the ARCO tower. Before the '80, demolitions sites at this scale were last seen in the aftermath of the 1964 Good Friday earthquake. 

Demolition has started on the Adams Building

As I shared in my last post on this subject, I'm quite shocked that the developer went ahead with demolishing the 4th Avenue Theater in its entirety. It was very jarring to see the half-demolished theater in person when I went to visit the site late last summer. I never had a chance to watch a movie in that building, so I don't have any sentimental memories of the place, but nonetheless it was shocking to see it in its torn-up state. You think you are prepared to see it half demolished, but you really are not. I think it's safe to say my shock is over the fact that this was the most notable and famous building in all of Anchorage. And that's why this project is a gamble. 

I can understand demolishing the building but saving the facade. Countless projects across the globe have made use of old facades and incorporated them into new buildings. To demolish the theater in its entirety is a very gutsy move. It will be interesting to see what ultimately gets built, but unfortunately, I think future generations will look at whatever is built and bemoan the fact that the theater, with its ornate Art Deco architecture that stood out from a sea of '80s office buildings and utilitarian strip malls, was demolished to make way for whatever replaces it. 

A new tower (left) will replace the First National Building

I wish this project all the success it can get. As an urbanist, I'm a fan of new projects, and I love to see construction cranes in the air. Indeed, I am one of those who thinks a high-rise building is more attractive during its construction phase, with all its steel beams exposed to the elements before the curtain wall is installed. The worst-case scenario is that the project stalls and a giant parking lot in the heart of downtown Anchorage is all the city has to show for it. It certainly would not help the current mayor's legacy, a legacy that is already tarnished by resignations and investigations. Here's to hoping Block 41 really does bring life to this part of downtown.  

Demolition of the 4th Avenue Theater now Underway

The city of Anchorage is now witnessing what will undoubtable go down as the most significant — and controversial — demolition work in the city's more-than-100-year history. Demolition work at the 4th Avenue Theater is now fully underway as part of a larger redevelopment project being overseen by Peach Holdings LLC — which, in addition to the historic theater, now owns every property on the block. The demolition puts an end to a decades-long battle to preserve and restore the building.  

While much of the artwork and other artifacts inside the theater will be taken down and transferred to the city, the building itself is to be demolished entirely. According to the building's owners and city officials, internal structural problems were too severe to warrant a full restoration of the Art Deco-styled building. Issues concerning asbestos and lead were also brought up by the mayor, Dave Bronson. Additionally, Peach Holdings LLC states that restoring the Lathrop Building — the official name of the building housing the theater — back into operation as a theater or other similar use did not pencil out. However, Trish Neal, board president of the Alaska Association for Historic Preservation, disagrees about the building being in such poor condition and told Alaska Public Media in an interview that the opinions of structural engineers vary widely. 

As for my take, I just want to write that I'm actually quite surprised that the entire building is coming down. In May, when Peach Holdings LLC unveiled their sweeping redevelopment project to the press, it was speculated afterward on social media that a portion of the theater, or perhaps just the facade, would be preserved. This speculation was due to the 4th Avenue Theater appearing seemingly untouched in the renderings for the new development. And a number of years ago, the owners made a slight reference to the possibility of the building being gutted of the actual theater space while disguising its new use by maintaining the facade. I therefore assumed that this was to be the case following the announcement of this new project. As of now, it is reported that the theater's facade will be knocked down, and a reconstruction of the facade will take its place — it's something I find a bit bizarre. Projects around the world have creatively preserved and utilized old facades for the ground level of new high-rise buildings — a new project doing just that is about to get underway in Seattle — so I don't see why the same could not be done with the Lathrop Building. 

This project is going to be quite a gamble, and I am quite nervous about how this will pan out. As alluded to earlier, the Lathrop Building is just one of several buildings to be demolished. The Adams Building next door will also be razed, as will the two-story building that once housed Woolworth's. First National Bank, which is next to the former theater, will have to vacate its premises after being at the same location for more than 50 years. Apparently, the owners of Cabin Fever had held out and refused purchase offers from Peach Holdings for its two-story building at the corner of 4th Avenue and G Street. Ultimately, however, a deal was made, and Cabin Fever along with an adjoining business will be moving across the street to recently vacated space. The nine-story First National Building will also be demolished, with plans calling for it to be replaced with a new high-rise of similar height.

I think I'll go ahead and wait until construction begins on the new redevelopment project before I discuss more about it. For now, this is about the 4th Avenue Theater. I have been going past the old theater every week since this summer, and it was this morning that I saw the theater in its current half-demolished form. Its mutilated appearance is quite grisly, and it actually hurt to see the building looking the way it does now. The thick concrete that makes up the building is going to make for a slow-going demolition, I guess. All I can think of is the unfortunate circumstances the theater, and the city, found itself in. Sitting largely abandoned since 1982, there are adults today entering middle-age who have never had the opportunity to step inside the theater. But nobody walks down 4th Avenue or the surrounding streets anymore — it's a product of the automobile age and suburbanization. Downtown needs new investment. But the argument, of course, is how that new investment should be handled. From now, it will be up to Anchoragites and visitors to Anchorage in 50 years, in 100 years, to decide whether demolition of the 4th Avenue Theater was worth it. 
 

4th Avenue Theater Part of new Mixed-use Tower Project

Yup, read all about it here. If you've already read the story, the Fang's (the husband and wife duo behind the proposal) and their company Peach Investments should sound familiar. About 15 years ago they proposed building a 20+ story tower on 5th Avenue in the empty lot next to Key Bank, right behind the 4th Avenue Theater. As goes with many proposals, the project fell through and nothing came of it. The proposal just reported by the Dispatch News a few hours ago today appears to share many of the same elements of the previous proposed high-rise. Like the circa 2000 proposal, this new tower will be over 20 stories (28 to be exact). Additionally this proposal like its previous incarnation will also be mixed-use with office space, hotel, and residence (oh, and retail). But what's the major difference between today's proposal and the one from 15 years ago? Well in 2009 the Fang's bought the neighboring 4th Avenue Theater at a foreclosure auction for $1.6 million. In the time since then, they have kept mum about what their plans for the theater were. When the issue of the outdoor breezeway on theater property became an issue with regards to public misuse last year, a Peach Investments representative declined to comment when asked what he meant when saying they might "remove the issue" altogether. He went on to say he was advised by Peach not to discuss anything related to the 4th Avenue Theater. Needless to say, those kinds of words coming from the property owners was quite discomforting for us fans of the beloved theater.

And so with the purchase of the theater, this new proposal seeks to extend its footprint from 5th to 4th Avenue which means incorporating the 4th Avenue Theater and a neighboring property into the development. Though no specifics were cited in the article, it appears that elements of the theater's façade will be retained. I go by this conclusion simply because it is totally not unheard of for developers to cleverly retain a historical façade while replacing the rest of the building with a completely new development. The Hearst Tower in midtown Manhattan is one of the more high profile projects that come to my mind (the tower was built in 2004, while the base was built in 1928). Anyways Peach Investments is hoping to score tax breaks for their current proposal which means going before the Anchorage assembly to do some convincing. Whether or not that will happen remains to be seen, but we may have an answer soon. As for my thoughts -- well I'd like to see the project penciled out some more before I can come to a judgement. If done correctly, this could be a great project.

4th Avenue Theater: Sold

Late last week at a courthouse down the street from the theater, the Lathrop Building, which was held by Northrim Bank on foreclosure from Joe Gottstein, was sold to Peach Investments of San Francisco. Since early in the decade, Peach had been interested in purchasing the theater with speculation that it wanted to convert the basement of the theater into a fitness center while the parcel of land directly behind the theater between the Key Bank (also owned by Peach) and First National Building on 5th Avenue would give rise to a 20+ story mixed-use building. As you probably know, the theater has been through a circus latley with the city, private foundations, its owner, and the bank all getting involved in these last few years as the theater changes hands once again since Gottstein bought the building in 1991. The theater itself has been out of operation since the 1980s and since then has played occasional host to your typical banquet, fundraiser, whatever. Preservationists, and rightly so, are concerned about what will happen with the building under the new ownership. I personally think the building will be taken care of under Peach, but we'll see what happens. One good thing about the theater being out of the hands of Gottstein is that with a much wealthier owner, the theater may see some serious TLC and aggressively seek opportunities to hold events or tenants. After 20 years under the good intentioned Gottstein, the theater seemed to be in a pergatory with nothing major happening. In fact I think we might be seeing action already taken as the front doors to the theater have been boarded up. I can't say for sure that the new owners are the ones responsible for this, but as someone who goes by the theater almost every day, I do know the wood was certainly not there a week ago. Earlier this year one of the display windows to the theater was shattered and remains with no glass.

BTW Peach Investments is indeed the same group behind the beautiful mixed-use 188 WNL tower on C Street between Benson and Northern Lights over in Midtown. I think this is why I don't feel too concerned about Peach being the new owner. Besides 188 WNL, the proposed Peach Tower behind the 4th Avenue Theater would also be a mixed-use building that is a level above the rest of the highrise inventory here in Anchorage. Mixed-use buildings are important in that they help foster street life by offering retail and other services on the bottom floor for the residents and/or the office workers above. Many of our highrise offices such as the ConocoPhillips building, or the new JL Tower don't offer that, and as a result their immediate surroundings are dead of pedestrian activity. Mixed-use buildings have surged in popularity, and in some cases mandated by city governments as they all contribute to more efficient economics. The proposed Augustine Energy Center for 6th and G Street will also be mixed-use as well as proposed Town Square Center on 6th and E. But I digress. What I'm trying to get at is that those who understand the need for mixed-use buildings usually come from the same school that embraces the concept of refurbishing warehouses and historical buildings into lofts or other uses. If you've been in a relatively big city in the lower-48 in the last few years, chances are you've seen many of these conversions taking place (many small cities are also seeing this happen). The idea of demolishing a historical building in place of a parking garage or a modernist bland building was a Robert Moses philosophy that flourished in the mid 20th century and peaked in the 60s with the demolition of New York's Penn Station. City planners have since learned from the mistakes made during that 50s-60s period and we're now continuing further into the Jane Jacobs philosophy. Of course we can never be sure that the theater will be saved, and people should be on the look out no doubt; but I hope and suspect the Lathrop Building is in good hands.