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Project Description
The
Fox Theater
1001 W. Sprague
Spokane, WA 99201
Completed: November 2007
The
Spokane Symphony and other Spokane visionaries saw value in saving the
Fox Theater, originally built in 1931, from becoming a future surface
parking lot, and successfully launched a campaign to save it as a
performing arts facility. Adaptive reuse of the Fox Theater has
restored the historic landmark’s original grandeur and the project has
become a cornerstone of Spokane’s cultural renaissance.
Located in the Davenport Arts District and occupying an entire city
block, the predominantly cast-in-place concrete structure of the Fox
Theater sits in contrast with most of its neighbors, historic brick
structures. Notable structures on the blocks surrounding the Fox are
the gothic-style Spokane Chronicle building and the art-deco
Spokesman-Review fleet garage.
Also noteworthy are other entertainment venues in the block adjacent to
the Fox Theater, the Knitting Factory Concert House and the Bing Crosby
Theater. Like the Fox, both these buildings attract concert and
performing arts audiences. They have large marquees over the main
entrances where the building is celebrated and upcoming events are
touted with bright lights and fanfare. Display cases and windows at the
pedestrian level of these two projects further advertise future
performances.
Theater projects are an inherently internally focused building type.
However, every effort was made to increase and improve the Fox Theater’s
street presence with this renovation. New digital marquees with
multi-colored lights at both main entrances of the building are the
signature renovation element on the exterior façades. The marquees
clearly mark the building entrances and ticket booths and, with their
multi-colored flashing lights and animated message boards, give the
project an air of excitement and drama at the pedestrian level – an
important attribute for a theater project of this importance. The
marquees also add to the drama of the neighborhood already created by
the Bing Crosby Theater and the Knitting Factory Concert House.
Other urban design amenities incorporated into the project include the
creation of display windows for advertising upcoming events and the
addition of art-deco eyebrow elements over windows and display cases.
New street trees offer cooling shade to waiting audiences. The entire
exterior of the concrete building was repaired and repainted to match
the original colors of the building’s exterior. Lastly, the sign on top
of the building that proudly proclaims the building’s name was
refurbished and replaced, preserving an important piece of Spokane’s
skyline.
Adaptive reuse of an existing structure is an important tenet of
sustainable design. Throughout the restoration process, most elements
were refurbished and reused, consistent with historical restoration
requirements and significantly reducing potential waste. In addition,
insulation was added to the roof and exterior walls where possible.
Single-glazed windows were replaced by new insulated windows with
custom, thermally broken frames that matched the profile of the original
windows, adding interest at the pedestrian level over standard window
profiles. A new energy-efficient mechanical system was installed, so
combined with the upgrades to the exterior envelope, the building’s
energy performance was significantly improved.
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