"And what is considered the historical section now were just thought of as OLD."
Any wonder why so much of our history was lost in Central/Downtown Phoenix, probably beginning right at the time this guy is reminiscing about. |
Kind of makes sense if you think about it though. It's like us thinking of houses built in the 70s and 80s...would you really save them? They are just...old. But in 50-60 years from now, people may think what nice historic houses they are.
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I think the big difference, though, is that these "old" houses he was talking about were definitely pre-war, which 100% means they were lacking A/C. When A/C became more widespread and a thought of as a necessity, those beautiful houses downtown were really from another (seeminly useless) time period. Imagine the costs to renovate and install an A/C system into an "old" house.
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hmmmm 2 foot thick brick and mortar wall or 2x4 and styrofoam wall? I'd have to say the houses they are building now, unless architecturarly significant or high dollar construction, will be worthless in 60 years.
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Interesting reminisces, but 2 corrections for what they're worth:
It's Stevie Nicks (from Fleetwood Mac), and her father was Jess Nicks. He opened/owned(?)/ran the 2 Compton Terrace amphitheatres in the Valley, named after a pioneering local radio DJ. The first one was at Legend City, by SRP. When LC closed, a new amph. opened on the Gila River Res. You can still see the stage and some Eucalyptus trees just west of I-10. Stevie's mother also owned an antique shop in downtown Scottsdale and then later in Payson. Also, Stevie was born at Good Samaritan Hosp. on McDowell in Phx in 1948, and they lived right off 16th St N of McDowell at the time. PS - other spelling corrections: McDonald's, and Marty Robbins. Also, the Bayless market replica museum mentioned was one of the bldgs near the NWC of Central/Indian School recently torn down. |
Please come join us for the monthly Phx Historic Neighborhoods Coalition meeting at 7 pm at the Phx Elem. School Dist. #1 Boardroom, which is reached via the parking lot south of Palm Lane and east of 7th street. We meet on the third Thursday of each month. Thanks.
http://phxhistoric.wordpress.com |
2010 enDangered Dozen historic Phx bldgs
Check out the Phoenix Historic Neighborhoods Coalition's 2010 list
of the most "enDangered Dozen" historic places in the city of Phx: http://pitch.pe/66942 |
This probably should go here:
Anyone have any info on the status of the Log Cabin Motel on E VB? i am concerned cuz it looks closed and there is a large backhoe parked on site. i think it would be a shame to lose this classic roadside kitschy gem. |
/\ NIXPHX, can I get a copy of the self-guided driving tour guide that is mentioned on the Phoenix Historic Neighborhoods Coalition website? It says to ask for one.
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HISTORIC FACADE RENOVATION AND REHABILITATION
Tucson is doing a great thing in renovating some of their historic structures' facades. Many times older buildings were given hideous 1950s-1980s renovations. Bringing back the original facade would do wonders to the streetscape and the look and feel of downtown Phoenix and the surroundings. We bitch and complain about the lack of historic building stock in Phoenix, or the lack of nice historic buildings to look at, but there are many out there hiding behind utter garbage facades. If the city could somehow provide grants and incentives to building owners to rehabilitate their historic structures, it would benefit everyone. Check these out that I know of: Heard Building and what is now the Quiznos at Central/Adams: http://www.arizonahistoricalimages.o...//ppl4050r.jpg courtesy of: http://www.arizonahistoricalimages.o...r.jsp?R=445900 What it looks like now (with Thai Elephant, Yasda Bento, Coney Island place, Quiznos, Roma Cafe): http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i2...ep/quiznos.jpg http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i2...p/quiznos2.jpg On the side of the quiznos at the top, you can still see that there is brick there (hard to tell in this pic). http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&ll=3...5.92,,0,-11.28 Imagine this block of contiguous street-fronting great buildings, right on the light rail line, brought back to their original glory. Sure, the ornateness and parapets are probably gone and they'd have to be rebuilt, but it could be done, and I'm sure the original brick is underneath. It would be a point of pride, rather than an ugly afterthought. The Heard Building is OK in its altered state, but not as good as it was. Majerle's and the couple of clubs along Washington: http://www.arizonahistoricalimages.o...h92033026r.jpg courtesy of: http://www.arizonahistoricalimages.o...r.jsp?R=450899 What it looks like now (slightly old pic): http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i2...p/majerles.jpg http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&ll=3...19.68,,0,-0.34 This one isn't too bad, however, Majerles could bring back the brick and rebuild the triangular parapet. It's the oldest remaining commercial building in Phoenix (late 1800s). Also, what was "Burn" is awful, you can kind of tell what it was at the far left of the historic picture (the Ezra W. Thayer Hardware building). The nice wooden railings for these buildings are gone forever, but the brick buildings themselves should be restored. Again, it would be a great looking street. The Subway and Focaccia Fiorentina corner at Central/Monroe: (look at the bottom left corner): http://www.arizonahistoricalimages.o...mh9708701r.jpg Courtesy of: http://www.arizonahistoricalimages.o...r.jsp?R=451589 What it looks like now: http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i2...rep/subway.jpg http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&ll=3...oid=po-2210107 I looked at the back side of this building the other day and the brick is still there. Again, the little parapets on the roof line may have been demolished, I don't know, but it would be such a better building with brick. Also, the Foccacia Fiorentina building looks like shit with its stuccoed purple arch. I'm certain whatever it was before would be awesome to bring back to life, I just can't find a good picture of it. There are several other smaller buildings around downtown and central Phoenix that would be so much nicer if their facades could be restored. I'm thinking of the MacAlpine's building on 7th street, and that llantera/wheel store on 7th Street and Roosevelt (brick building hiding behind a wall of corrugated steel). Somehow we need to take the cue from Tucson and bring these structures back to life! |
Great old pictures, and great idea! I think it would be great if these buildings could be restored to what they once were. The 'renovations' done to a lot of them don't look cohesive, and this would certainly bring back some of the history and uniqueness that you should find in a major city's downtown.
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Not a bad idea at all. It would be awesonme to be eating in a Subway with a 20s' era-30s' era feel to it. Also I wonder if those 1 story buildings along Central have the option to add something above it like say apartments or a small private buisness. It's nice to have a modern downtown but then again we start making our historical buildings look like they were built yesterday.
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PM me your address. Thx. PS - I've thought the same thing about the facades for a long time. and if Tucson can do it, we should be able to. Good for Tucson for doing that. i do plan on trying to foster this along here in Phx. Thx for the pix and putting it out there. Also, there was a plan about 10 years ago to restore the Heard Bldg.; maybe some day. also, i like the quiznos bldg's current look as well as old look. It's current look may in fact be historic; it looks like it was changed in the 1940s perhaps. it used to have a cool old clock right at the corner on the awning til about 4 years ago. |
Also, the Log Cabin Motel is gone, fyi. Sucks!!
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http://www.azcentral.com/community/p...-landmark.html
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Cool Then and Now that AZCentral.com put together...
http://www.azcentral.com/centennial/...n-and-now.html |
I have mentioned this before on this website, but I'm not sure in which thread... you know the Security Building that was being renovated that also houses the PURL? Well, long ago I made an "urban exploration" trek into the penthouse of the building and discovered (for myself) the rooftop deck/garden:
http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i2...p/DSC00600.jpg Another picture I took at that time was of the crown of the building from the rooftop: http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i2...DSC00607-1.jpg I have also posted this before, but notice what I think is a lantern? http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i2...ngLantern2.jpg How cool would it be for our nighttime skyline if that lantern still worked and could be turned on? Well, I figured ASU's PURL would be a perfect contact to see if we can get that lantern turned on at night... they'd be interested, right? Well, I sent a long-winded email to the PURL director, and here is her response: Quote:
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Here's to hoping we have one more cool thing on our skyline at night! |
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