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Show SMITH BALLE HYAIT ARCHITECTS Thomas G. Smith Wayne L. Balle Kim A. Hyatt November 23, 1994 Blaine Lutz, Finance Director Centerville City Community Development 655 North 1250 \Vest Centerville, Utah 84014 Dear Blaine: It was a pleasure to meet with you, David and Clara the other day to review your proposals for the Thomas Whitaker House. As you requested, I have given some thought to your ideas for an adaptive re-use/rehabilitation project for possible mixed use as a Senior Citizens' Center and Museum. Following are some very preliminary design options. From an historic preservation point of view, the house represents not a given moment in local history, but various periods of community growth, as reflected in the additions and modifications to the house. I believe your rehabilitation plans should reflect this "flow of history." However, as I observed the other day, I don't believe that all of the additions necessarily lend themselves to an attractive, functional public facility. My initial thoughts in this regard are that the brick additions to the north of the house should be preserved, as well as the possibly older cross-wing element to the east. The framed lean-to additions and later masonry additions (including the garage) should probably be removed. The Conceptual Cost Estimate (attached) reflects this assumption about rehabilitating the house. Inasmuch as you propose a public facility for the property, I have also assumed a fairly substantial amount of site development and site furnishings, besides construction costs for the building itself. Incidentally, I believe the small, framed summer kitchen(?) just northeast of the house should be preserved and developed with the rest of the site. Also, issues such as accessibility for the disabled must be considered. Finally, you may note that some of the estimated unit costs appear to be on the "high side." This is due to several factors: the relative high cost of construction in the Wasatch Front area due to Utah's construction boom; the higher costs of rehabilitation versus new construction; the escalation factor for Davis-Bacon wages, estimated to be about 25%; and, the many unknowns at this early stage of project development. I suggest that the City pursue a more formal process in determining the ultimate feasibility of the project. A "Pre-Development Study" of the type funded through the State Preservation Office's CLG Grants Program would be an excellent means to accomplish this. If you wish, we would be happy to provide a proposal for such a study. 845 'SOUTH MAIN · BOUNTIFUL . UTAH 84010 . TEL (SOl ) 298·1666 • FAX 298·1677 |
