More pieces are being put into place for Salt Lake City’s new Performing Arts Center. Yesterday City officials announced who will be designing and building the $110 million dollar project. HKS Architects, a local firm, along with Pelli Clarke Pelli Architects beat out 14 other bidders to design the future theater which will sit on Main Street. Michael Vela, managing principal with HKS says it’s still too early to tell what the theater could look like.
“We really don’t have any preconceived notions of what it is going to look like. But first we have to design all of the elements make the building work properly; how the trucks come in and out, how the people come in and out, the actors, the visitors, the participants, once all of those things work out then quite frankly the design is going to evolve.”
It will also be local workers doing the work on the center once the design is complete. The City hired Layton Construction who has helped build Rice Eccles Stadium and the LDS Conference Center. David Layton calls the project a career opportunity.
“While the elements and features aren’t yet defined, we do know that its going to be an iconic type structure and it’s going to be a gathering place for the community. So, in terms of our team, we like to be involved with projects like this.”
The City says construction on the 2,500 seat theater won’t begin until 2014; it’s scheduled to open in March of 2016.