The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1911-05-20
CAPITOL COMMISSION IS RIGHT

CAPITOL COMMISSION IS RIGHT.
We are glad TO sec that the Capitol
Commission is starting out right in its
| undertaking to provide a fit capitol
building for the State Of Utah. IL will
first inspect the capitols Of other States
rs TO their commodiousness their Sc.
curlty, and their architectural beauty.
1t Will be kept in mind by the COM
mission constantly. of course that the
building should always fiji the site.
Here is point in which the postoffice
department is radically defective. 1t
has standard architectural plans for
postoffice buildings, and constructs
buildings upon those plans, without
regard to the site or the adaptation of
the plan to the surroundings A build.
ing that commands and beautifes a
commanding site might look inferior
If put down on level or in dc
preston. especially if surrounded by
other buildings that dominate it archi-
tccturally That is the trouble with
the Salt Lake postoffice building. I'll
that building had been put on rising
ground, or on eminence, il would stand
forth IN beauty TO the admiration OF
all beholders. AS il is, it is utterly
dwarfcd and insignificant, architectur.
ally. And so we commend to the CAPT
tol commission the consideration Of the
site upon which the building is to be
constructed, as we'll as the architectural
features of the building itself, in de.
tcrmining plans
We have recently had an example |
in this city of getting at things the |
wrong way, in the operations Of the |
Board Of Education Of this city. First, |
that board adopted a plan to build the |
new 100000 high school upon, and |
selected the architect who made the
plan to supervise the construction.
Every one naturally supposed that that
settled it. But the city was astonished |
a short time afterwards to find that
the plan had been materially changed
both in architecture. and in interior ar.
Then the community was
astounded still further by the news
that the Board of Education would |
send certain of its members East. and
did send them, TO investigate school
houses, and bring back ideas of con
structlon, OF convenience, of adaptation,
and III general OF models for school
Here was precisely the re.
verse of what should have been done.
First, there was the selection of the
plan, then its modification, and then
the search for models to 90 upon Mani
festly the last should have been first
in this programme. The board should
have investigated, first of all, the
school buildings in the East; if it was
going into that sort Of investigation at
all, clearly this was the first thing 10
do. Then the board should have set
forth its ideas in the invitation for
plans and specifications for the new
building. and invited competition OH
the requirements as Indicated, AS il
is now, no one has any idea of the
sort of a high school building we are
going to have; but everyone knows that
the Board of Education has gone to
work in precisely the reverse way in
adopting the plan for the building.
1t is pleasant TO sec that the capitol
commission has taken up The investi.
CATION first, in place of last as the
Board OF Education did. The capitol
commission will first look over The
:apitols Of a number of the different
States, and will follow. modify, or
adapt according To the circumstances
and the needs Of the state, giving due
weight TO the fitness of building TO
site, and then we shall have a capitol
The result of investigation, of expert
epce, and of the most modern ideas in
beauty. utility, and safety. We com
mend emphatically the course of the
,apitol commission in going about its
business in tho right way. This leads
he people Of the State to hope for the
best possible results, and to expect that
We shall have a capitol in which every
utility will bc combined with safety. ;
beauty, and conformity of building to
site IN such manner as to yield the
pest possible architectural and slightly /;
effects.
BRONSON EMPHATICALLY RIGHT.