Pershing re-use

[Coyote]

Group eyes Pershing as a botanical garden

The idea is so early in the planning stages there's not much concrete detail, but Lincoln Parks and Recreation Director Lynn Johnson said an indoor garden could become an anchor downtown. The idea of a botanical garden is included in the city's long-term plan -- LPlan 2040.

Steward brought up the idea of putting it in Pershing, which could be redeveloped after the Pinnacle Bank Arena opens in 2013. "I've felt the structure should be reused, not torn down," he said. "It's in a very central public setting on Centennial Mall and an ideal visitor destination site."

[iamjacobm]

What every they do with the building the mural HAS to be saved some how.

[almighty_tuna]

Yeah, that's definitely a one-of-a-kind.

[iamjacobm]

Looks like they will do a study about converting it to a new downtown library.

[Linkin5]

Looks like they will do a study about converting it to a new downtown library.

This would be awesome, Bennett Martin has run its course and either needs an upgrade or needs to be replaced.

[Linkin5]

Delving into the 3 proposals for Pershing

http://journalstar.com/news/local/govt- ... 0bf59.html

The block on which Pershing Center stands would be transformed into apartments and stores, including a downtown grocery, based on private company proposals submitted this week.  

One of the private plans includes space for a new downtown city library, based on the proposals released by the city’s Urban Development Department on Wednesday afternoon.

Both private company plans call for demolition of the 55-year-old city auditorium.

Even the proposal from the Library Board of Trustees, which would turn the block into the city’s main library, indicates the decision to demolish or rehab Pershing would be made at a later date.

A selection committee will review the proposals in mid-October and provide their recommendation to Mayor Chris Beutler, who will make the final decision.

[iamjacobm]

The mayor rejected all three.

[Linkin5]

The mayor rejected all three.

I'm not too upset about this, I wasn't thrilled with any of the proposals.

[Coyote]

Pershing could face wrecking ball

Demolition was part of two of the three redevelopment plans offered for the square block in 2012.

The third proposal, converting the building into a city library, might have involved tearing down the building, but that decision would have been made at a later date.

Mayor Chris Beutler rejected all three proposals, primarily because they involved too much city funding.

[iamjacobm]

Would be a mistake to not find a way to save the mural in some shape or form.

[Coyote]

Photos: Pershing Center auction items

Everything from basketball goals to popcorn machines will be up for bid as the city auctions off the contents of Pershing Center.

[Coyote]

Pershing proposals envision space for Lincoln downtown library

[Greg S]

Has Pershing been torn down yet?

[CapitalGuy]

No

[nebugeater]

It is not even a sure thing that it gets town down if memory serves me correct. Is there some consideration for reuse of the building without demolition?

[ita]

It is not even a sure thing that it gets town down if memory serves me correct. Is there some consideration for reuse of the building without demolition?

The Mayor accepted the White Lotus proposal, which does include demolition.

Lincoln's Pershing Center arena will be torn down under $54 million redevelopment plan

Pual Hammel
The Pershing Center, which hosted hundreds of state tournament basketball games and dozens of rock concerts, would be torn down under a $54 million redevelopment plan announced this week.

The plan, which includes building a 100-unit, affordable-rent apartment complex and providing space for a possible city library, still requires approval by the Lincoln City Council.

Here are a couple images taken from the White Lotus site:

[ita]

Pershing redevelopment plans moving forward – with or without library

Matt Olberding
Plans to transform the vacant Pershing Center into a vibrant retail, residential and civic development took a small step forward Wednesday.

The Lincoln-Lancaster County Planning Commission unanimously recommended that the project be found in conformance with the city's Comprehensive Plan for land use and that the zoning on the site should be changed from public to the same B-4 business zoning that covers most of downtown.

Omaha-based White Lotus Development, which was chosen last year over four other developers, is proposing approximately 300,000 square feet of development on the block bounded by Centennial Mall and 16th, M and N streets, including 100 affordable housing units, small retail uses, a wellness center, a child care center, underground parking and a community green space.

Also included in the proposal is a 90,000-square-foot, three-level public library that would replace the existing Bennett Martin Library, although that is subject to voters approving a bond issue to pay for it.

It's nice to see this one keep moving through the approval process. Even if the bond issue doesn't pass for the library, the project will move forward without the library.

I know I shouldn't compare, but this makes me wish even more that the Civic Site were broken up into smaller lots for private development; it could be four city blocks, or even smaller parcels. The City may prove me wrong with a strong proposal from a private developer for the whole site, but based on how it's gone so far, I think something needs to change.

[Coyote]

Pershing mural supporters plan to start taking tiles down,
despite still needing $35,000

It's official: In a few weeks, the Pershing mural is coming down — carefully. A small group of people working furiously to raise enough money to remove, restore and reinstall the giant mural that has graced the Pershing Center for 65 years has decided to move ahead even though they’re still about $35,000 short of what is needed for the tile removal.

Mike McCullough, who owns MTZ Properties, agreed to remove the more than 760,000 tiles for $844,000, said Liz Shea-McCoy, who is leading the effort to save the mural. She said she’s confident they’ll raise the remaining money to pay for the removal. “I’m pinching myself — we are so close,” Shea-McCoy said. “I think the enthusiasm is incredible for this thing.”

The group began work March 1 to raise $3 million needed to safely remove the tiles, restore them and reinstall them somewhere else — an ambitious goal necessitated by the city’s plans to demolish the building. The group’s first task was to raise $13,000 to pay for a feasibility study that determined there was no asbestos in the mural itself and that it could be saved.



(A $3 million campaign is underway to remove the Pershing Center mural, clean each of its 763,000 square-inch tiles, restore missing areas and reinstall the mural closer to eye level at another public location in Lincoln.)

[S.O.Boy]

$35,000 some people might have that in the cushions on their couch. Save that piece of history.

[Coyote]

Crews begin to carefully remove historic mural at Pershing Auditorium in Lincoln

[Coyote]

Workers finish removing the Pershing mural's 763,000 tiles

After 65 years, the giant, 763,000-tile mural is gone from the facade of Pershing Center, saved by a small group of people determined not to see it demolished along with the old auditorium. That small group, led by arts advocate Liz Shea-McCoy, raised the $844,000 necessary to safely remove the tiles from the 38-foot-by-140-foot mural before city officials start demolition on the building on Centennial Mall. In four months, nearly 850 people from across Nebraska and beyond donated to the cause, and on July 20, Mike McCullough, owner of MTZ Properties, and his crew began the painstaking process of removing the tiles. “We did the impossible in four months,” Shea-McCoy said. “I couldn’t be happier. I’m so proud of the generosity of Nebraskans. This is just a great example of the importance of people coming together to save a piece of Nebraska history.”

The mural was designed by Leonard Thiessen and William Hammond and when it was finished in 1957, it was thought to be the largest of its kind in the western hemisphere. Thousands of people have walked under the mural on their way to sporting events, concerts and graduations. The tiles were removed by adhering a sticky, specialized material, similar to contact paper, on 4-foot-by-8-foot sections of the mural, then using a putty-like tool behind the mural and carefully pulling the tiles off, section by section.



Workers remove the last few tiles of the Pershing Center mural, which is being stored until money is raised to restore and reinstall the 763,000-tile mural at another location.
JUSTIN WAN, Journal Star

[nativeomahan]

So glad they are saving this iconic piece of Lincoln (and Nebraska) history. I hope it can find a new home where it will be on permanent display,

[Coyote]

Pershing mural in storage, search for new location continues

LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) - The enormous and iconic mural that once appeared above the Pershing Center in Lincoln is now down and in storage. The Nebraska State Historical Society Foundation, along with local artist and arts advocate Liz Shea-McCoy, is leading the fundraising effort to save the 38 foot-by-140-foot mural. “We were able to raise about $1 million in four months to get the mural removed,” Shea-McCoy said. “A lot of the fundraising success was based on many of the memories we all had at the auditorium, and I’m speaking of generations.” Each of the 763,000 square-inch tiles have come down. The effort to save the mural has been successful but its future home remains unclear.

“Now we are working closely with the city of Lincoln on the re-installation site of the mural,” Shea-McCoy said. “We want a well-trafficked area, and we are going to build a plaza in front of it. We want teachers to bring their students to look at the mural as a springboard for inspiration. We want Nebraskans and visitors to come and look at the mural. It will be brought down to eye level, so people can see it up close. Topographical lines of Nebraska are actually built into the mural. It’s very abstract, whether it’s the Oregon Trail, the Mormon Trail. It’s a Nebraska icon, and it’s a piece of art that represents the state.” The mural is now being stored in a warehouse. Shea-McCoy says the next step is finding the new location for the mural. Once that location is found, grant writing can begin. Donations are once again needed. If you would like to donate, you can send a check to the Nebraska State Historical Society Foundation. (128 North 13th Street, Suite 1010, Lincoln, NE 68508), noting Pershing Mural Preservation Project in the ‘memo’ line of the check. You can also donate online to the foundation.

[Coyote]

Nebraska lawmakers to ponder funding for relocation of iconic mural
Advocate calls art saved from Pershing Center facade the “People’s Mural”

LINCOLN — A $1.5 million boost from Nebraska lawmakers would help give a new home to the iconic Pershing Center mural, whose more than 760,000 tile pieces today sit in a warehouse after removal last year from the old city arena. Fans of the mammoth artwork say they’ve already secured a new spot at Lincoln’s Wyuka historical park and cemetery but are short of funds to cover relocation and rising installation costs. Introduced Thursday, Legislative Bill 411 by State Sen. George Dungan of Lincoln would earmark $1.5 million from the state’s general fund toward the $3 million preservation project. Private and philanthropic donations are to cover the rest.


Rendering of the Pershing Center mural in its potential new home at Wyuka cemetery and park area of Lincoln. (Courtesy of Michelle McCullough of Moment Architecture)

Wyuka, which is a Lakota Indian word meaning “to rest,” was established in 1869 as a burial ground and Lincoln’s first public park. It has since grown into roughly 140 acres. Its website also refers to the site as a “museum without walls,” which features statuary art, monumental architecture and historical tributes to Lincoln families, war veterans and more.

[Linkin5]

Pershing is beginning to be torn down.

[F0R_L1F3]

According to the Journal Star, development looks to start soon. Really hope they get somebody real quick to work on a project around it as well and get maybe a new library started up. Lots of potential to rework the corridor.

[Trips1]

According to the Journal Star, development looks to start soon. Really hope they get somebody real quick to work on a project around it as well and get maybe a new library started up. Lots of potential to rework the corridor.

This was a missed opportunity to close all of Centennial Mall down. On the east side of the street you have Pershing, 2 story parking garage and the Federal building. The west side does not really have any businesses that would lose access.

The 2 story parking garage to the north of Pershing should have been included in this development. I'm guessing the Federal Building parking had a big say in that.

[F0R_L1F3]

According to the Journal Star, development looks to start soon. Really hope they get somebody real quick to work on a project around it as well and get maybe a new library started up. Lots of potential to rework the corridor.

This was a missed opportunity to close all of Centennial Mall down. On the east side of the street you have Pershing, 2 story parking garage and the Federal building. The west side does not really have any businesses that would lose access.

The 2 story parking garage to the north of Pershing should have been included in this development. I'm guessing the Federal Building parking had a big say in that.

Yeah, true. I go down there all the time and sometimes I wish that they just closed the rest of it. I feel like if they went with the original plan as well, it would've only made it better.