The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-06-02
TALKS Of PLANS
FOR BUILDING Of
AUERBACH & BRO.
New York Architect Is Here to
Look Over Site of
Big Store.
NEW STRUCTURE TO BE
SIX STORIES HIGH
ARNOLD Drummer SAYS SALT
LAKE STREETS CALL FOR
MASSIVE BUILDINGS.

/ Arnold W. Drummer, a noted New
York architect, is in Salt Lake for the
/ purpose Of making a preliminary sur
vey of conditions before commencing
to draw plans for the new store OF F.
/ Auerbach & Bro, which will occupy
the present site of the department store
/ on the west side of Main street. be-
tween First and Second South streets.
/ While Mr.. Drummer is not yet ready to
give the approximate cost of the build
| ing he is to design. ii is understood
4 that the structure Will cost about $780,
O0O
Mr.. Drummer prepared the plans for
the new federal building in Cleveland.
O., and designed numerous skyscrapers
IN New York and other cities. He is a
conspicuous member Of the art and
architectural clubs and societies of the
metropolis, and last year passed ex-
pert judgment upon about S3S. OOO, 900
worth of work for the New York art
commission. He was one Of the judges
Of buildings at the jamestown exposi-
ton, and is q member Of the commit
tees appointed in Baltimore and Cleve-
land 10 direct the grouping Of public
buildings in those cities so as to give
more impressive and artistic appear
ance TO the streets
The new Auerbach department store
is TO be six stories high and will cover
strip of ground with 40 feet frontage
upon Main street and running back 800
| feet al the deepest point and 2l5 feet
at the shallOwest.
Will Study Surroundings.
AT this time" said Mr.. Drummer
yesterday, Il cannot tell what sort OF
building I shall design. ! am here TO
make a preliminary study of conditions
before commencing work upon the
plans. 1 Will look at the people coming
in and going out, so as To learn the
needs of the department store in the
matter of entrances, exits. elevators.
and all the other details Of the new
structure. Then it will be necessary
for me 10 study the character of sur
rounding buildings, so as to make the
architecture of the new department
store harmonic with Salt Lake archi-
lecture in general. II is not my inten-
ton to design something unusual or
startling. First, it must answer the re-
quirements of the business for which il
is planned. and then its outward ap-
pearance must be monumental and ma
jestic-a fit structure for the splendid,
broad streets of your city.
These streets of Salt Lake call for
large buildings. They are so broad
that a small building is not worthy or
the magnificent general plan. By a
large building I do not mean narrow.
fOrty-story buildings. such as they
erect in crowded New York. New
York structure Of that character would
be out of place in Salt Lake. where the
city has been laid out upon such gen
erous lines. To my mind, the right
sort of structure for Salt Lake would
be long, broad building, OF a solid
impressive type. Property owners who
when they decide to build. do not put
up large buildings here. ought 10 be
ashamed. The broad streets demand
large buildings
Material Not Determined.
LAS to the material to be used in the
construction of the building. l have not
made up my mind. and will not until l
have carefully examined other build
ings in Salt Lake. I can only say now
that the new department store will he
thoroughly freproof in every part. This
matter Of material is of great impOr-
lance in designing a building. Some
mOterial, when first used, is attractive.
but quickly betrays the ravages OF
time The problem for me to solve is
the discovery of the material which IS
best suited 10 conditions in Salt Lake
the material which will grow old
gradually.
This is an American city, and for
that reason the design for the building
will not be horribly French or terribly
Italian. II will not look as though II
had been torn up by the roots in Paris
for transplanting here.
1T is true that in studying archi-
lecture we go TO France and Italy and
profit by what we see and learn there
But in America. especially in the de-
signing OF buildings intended for COM
meTcial Establishments. there is no
reason why We should duplicate
French and Italian places.
las a matter of fact, we are getting
a distinctly American style Of archi-
lecture Our business structures are
distinctly American. II is based, it is
Continued on Page 2.