by Michael Monks
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THE RIVER CITY NEWS MORE COVINGTON NEWS THAN ANY OTHER SOURCE
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EXCLUSIVE
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| Esther Johnson shows before-and-after photos of her work on the Madison, held by Frank Hulefeld |
One of Covington's top attractions is expanding but its design plans were not recommended for approval by the City's historic preservation officer. Members of the Urban Design Review Board also unanimously opposed the Madison Theater's design plans for its expansion into the neighboring building that up until last year housed Kings DJ & Lighting. Madison Live would offer concert-goers another venue and help add to the 250,000 - 300,000 people that the owner of the Madison Theater claims already visit the spot annually.
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| The proposed facade will feature glass blocks like this |
The sticking point was the design's 12-foot glass block facade and board members hesitation to allow the building to look differently than the others near it. However, after a passionate plea from Frank Hulefeld, former owner of the Mad Hatter which he closed to work for Esther Johnson at the Madison Theater, a new discussion opened. "Nobody loves this city more than Esther," Hulefeld said. "She's dedicated her life to Covington." Confused that the review board would oppose the proposed glass block facade, Hulefeld continued. "We're an outlandish business, we're in the music industry," he said. "It's going to be a shining light for the whole block. Two hundred-fifty to three-hundred thousand people come to Covington (for the Madison Theater). When you look at the core of our city and all the empty spots, who else is doing that?"
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"Let's not pretend that Kings was a beautiful place, it was an eyesore," Hulefeld said. "It was ugly. Esther has proven for decades that she does things well here. Whackburger is opening up across the street because the Madison Theater is there. That means a lot of good things." Hulefeld is a Covington native and lives in Botany Hills and argued that the city should not fight opportunities to be unique and hip. "Artists tour all over this country, San Francisco, New York, a lot of big cities," he said. "When they come to Covington we want them to feel that they are in a hip city."
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Covington commercial real estate agent and City Commission candidate Chuck Eilerman also spoke in support of the design. "I think this is an extraordinarily worthwhile effort," said Eilerman, who helped found Covington's urban design review board. "Here in Covington we're proud of our new library and it doesn't look like anything around it. When we founded this board, we did not want it to become adversarial with people wanting to do things."
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"We love the idea of what's happening here, we're just questioning this design," said board member Charles King. "We have to think of it in context. It's a new element to the street."
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"No one's declining that this is a contributing business but we're here today to decide on the design and how it fits into the area," said board member Rebecca Weber.
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Esther Johnson, in addition to the Madison Theater, has developed many Downtown Covington buildings, including the Backstage Cafe and the former Parisian building on Pike Street that now houses a law firm. She was concerned that the delay in this latest plan may cause a loss of planned business. Concerts are already booked for the new venue for which she hoped to have a soft launch in April and a grand opening in May.
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Board member Jack Gore along with Charles King suggested some improvements to the design that would be acceptable. Esther Johnson agreed to to place brick tile two feet in from both sides of the building to frame the glass block wall. Additionally, the roof will feature a decorative cornice, which was lacking in Johnson's plans. Esther Johnson agreed to the plans and will resubmit her plans quickly to Beth Johnson for approval. The board then unanimously agreed to the design. "We'll make it work," Johnson said afterwards, adding that she will have workers in the space as early as Tuesday.
Why do "business professionals" extort the UDRB by claiming they are going to hold up their plans? Maybe Esther Johnson & Co. should think about design impact and community standards BEFORE they book the new venue. Arrogant. Unprofessional. Bullies. Shame on Chuck Eilerman for backing bully tactics like these instead of respecting the process.
ReplyDeleteIt is not surprising that the UDRB board had to express its persistent conservative views on creative and expressive architecture. Thank God that they had no say in the design of the Ascent. Had Rebecca Weber (who has no experience in design) had her way the Ascent would be three stories, square and constructed of brick - and lets dont forget the windows that would have to match those in the surrounding structures. It amazes me that this board is made up of individuals whom have no design or artistic ability. Jack Gore is an architect but a conservative one. Mr. Meyer I guess has a masters in architecture but what has he designed? The Commission needs to appoint people that have the skill and fortitude to accept new design. Architecture is art, its an expression of the times and that of the designer. Great design creates discussion. The fact that a design does not reflect that of the past is good. Please commisioners if you want this city to move forward start appointing people to the UDRB that are expressive and creative. Please no more Rebecca Webers'.
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