The Utah Symphony — and Abravanel Hall, its home since it was built in 1979 — hold a special place in many Salt Lake City arts lovers’ hearts. Roger and Karen Blaylock have been regulars since the 1970s.
“I came from California to work at the University of Utah Law Library and Roger was a student there,” Karen said. “I think our first event at the symphony was [when] we went on a date.”
“It really made a big difference that it was a hall dedicated to the symphony,” Roger said. “When they shut the doors, it's all acoustically contained within the concert hall. So the sound is just absolutely incredible.”
There’s been a furor over the future of Abravanel Hall since it was included in plans to reimagine downtown around the Delta Center and Salt Palace Convention Center. Things picked up steam after the Smith Entertainment Group successfully delivered on a National Hockey League team for the state, in part because of a law passed by the Legislature that provides the framework for a “sports, entertainment, culture and convention district” downtown. The group also owns the Utah Jazz and the Delta Center.
While sports fans rejoiced, some arts lovers were uneasy about the possibility of the symphony leaving downtown. In a joint statement on May 7, Salt Lake County Mayor Jenny Wilson, the Smith Entertainment Group and the Utah Symphony confirmed the symphony’s inclusion in future district plans but added they need to “weigh all factors, including the high cost of a renovation alongside the benefits of rebuilding.”
Although located inside Salt Lake City limits, Abravanel Hall, the Utah Museum of Contemporary Art and the Salt Palace Convention Center are operated by the county.
“If you look at either a rebuilding of Abravanel Hall on site or if the choice is that we just renovate, it's still a multi-hundred million dollar investment,” Wilson said during a Salt Lake City Council meeting that same day.
Wilson later followed with another statement on May 14 that said she is working on a “district design that allows Abravanel Hall to remain in its present form.”
Now, the county is weighing the pros and cons of a pricey renovation, one that could cost upward of $200 million. According to a new master plan for the iconic venue, the renovations would include upgrades to the performance hall, the HVAC system, acoustics and making sure the building is compliant with the Americans With Disabilities Act.
Today, Salt Lake County and the Utah Symphony/Utah Opera unveiled the 2024 Master Plan for Abravanel Hall to the Salt Lake County Council.
— Mayor Jenny Wilson (@SLCoMayor) May 21, 2024
This comprehensive effort to assess the needs of Abravanel Hall has been in development since 2021 to address the needs of this iconic…
For the Blaylocks and others in the arts community, the high cost of remodeling Abravanel Hall would be money well spent.
“They’ve had 40 years of good use out of it and it's worth every penny,” Roger Blaylock said. “Trying to build that kind of a facility again, it just wouldn't happen. We understand that it's 40 years old, so there's maintenance that has to be done. And I understand that the county probably hasn't had the money to do what it needs to do. Upgrading it? Fine. Replacing it? That's not thinkable at all. Just no.”
“Sometimes it seems like sports run too many decisions,” Karen added. “And if they can put in a hockey team, I think they ought to balance it with some classical music.”
Plans are still in the earliest stages, but the speed at which lawmakers pursued legislation to entice both the NHL and Major League Baseball to town — and how fast Utah secured the hockey team — are probably part of the anxiety on Abravanel. Speaking to the city council on May 7, alongside Mayor Wilson, Mike Maughan of the Smith Entertainment Group said they “want Abravanel Hall on site” and included the Utah Museum of Contemporary Art as their plans are for “a sports, entertainment, culture and convention district.”
“Two of the most important elements of our culture and arts programs here in Salt Lake City, Salt Lake County and the state of Utah in this region are those [venues] and we want them on site and want that to be very clear, unequivocally,” he said.
The Salt Lake County Council will discuss the Abravanel Hall master plan at its regular meeting on May 21. Salt Lake City residents will also have an opportunity to weigh in on the proposed sales tax increase that will power the revitalization zone at a city meeting that same day.
