Return of the Dragon: Iconic Sign Goes Back Up On 25th Street

A Weber County Forum Tip O' The Hat to the many dedicated Utah lumpencizens who participated in the preservation and restoration of this iconic downtown Ogden City landmark

Great news for Ogden historic preservation buffs this morning, via Standard-Examiner columnist Mark Saal. Here's the lede, folks:

OGDEN — The folks on Historic 25th Street haven’t been this excited since the repeal of Prohibition.
They’re calling it “Return of the Dragon,” and it’s not just a classic Bruce Lee martial-arts film. It’s also a well-deserved party for a long-very-nearly-lost friend.
The neon dragon sign that for more than 60 years loomed over the Star Noodle Parlor on 25th Street is finally back where it belongs. On Monday, crews from YESCO, the company that built the original sign, returned the dragon to its rightful place on the famed downtown Ogden street — whence it had been missing since 2008.

Read the encouraging full story here:

• Return of the Dragon: Iconic sign goes back up on 25th Street

"And now, on Friday, Feb. 6, a 'Return of the Dragon' celebration is planned. At 5 p.m., refreshments will be served at the building at 225 Historic 25th St., including a “reinvention” of the famed shrimp salad that the Star Noodle Parlor used to serve. Then, at 5:30 p.m., comes the moment folks have been anticipating for more than six years: Following brief speeches by the appropriate dignitaries, the dragon will officially blaze back to life when a switch is thrown, exciting the dragon’s colorful neon tubes," Mr. Saal reports.

Thus ends the Star Noodle Dragon Treasure Hunt.

Here's a Weber County Forum Tip O' The Hat to the many dedicated Utah lumpencizens who ever-so-stealthily participated in the preservation and restoration of this iconic downtown Ogden City landmark.

Standard-Examiner: And The Hunt Is On For Ogden Landmarks

Check out the Ogden City website, where you'll find more information, along with a downloadable contest entry form

Attention Emerald City architecture buffs! The Standard-Examiner provides a heads up this morning regarding a very unique competition, sponsored by a couple of highly-respected home town historic preservation entities.

Here's the lede:

OGDEN -- City officials are encouraging area residents to keep their eyes on local architecture during the municipality's annual historic scavenger hunt that runs through May 17.
The ninth annual hunt is being sponsored by the Ogden Landmarks Commission and Weber County Heritage Foundation and as part of National Historic Preservation Month.
The hunt is meant to get people out on the streets of Ogden to look at the city's unique historic buildings, said Sharon Smith, a city planning technician.

Read the full SE story here:

• And the hunt is on for Ogden landmarks

WCF regular contributor Dan S. participated in this competition last year; and his shared experience yielded us some very interesting results.

For those of you who'd like to follow Dan's example and participate of your own accord this year, check out this page from the Ogden City website, where you'll find more information, along with a downloadable contest entry form:

• Historic Preservation Scavenger Hunt

Happy hunting, O Gentle Ones...

A Sunday Tour of Downtown Ogden

Photos and commentary on the status of selected projects

by Dan Schroeder

Yesterday I spent a couple of hours pedaling around downtown Ogden. Although my main objective was to finish the Historic Building Scavenger Hunt, I also took this opportunity to observe and photograph the status of several ongoing downtown projects.

I was pleased to see plenty people and cars at The Junction, mostly around the movie theater and restaurants. As others have said, it seems a shame that the Salomon Center isn’t also open on Sunday.

Glancing upward at the windows of the Liberty Junction apartments, I saw increasing signs of occupancy. At the ground level, though, there’s been hardly any change in the last year. Nearly all of the retail space remains “for lease”. There is a new potato restaurant (closed on Sunday) in the Subway building. Fed-Ex and T-Mobile are still the only two tenants in the retail spaces fronting on Washington Blvd.

Across Washington, the situation hasn’t changed much either. The ground-level retail spaces that were renovated by the city last fall, using federal stimulus funds, are still vacant.

And of course, looming over the intersection of 24th and Washington, the old Wells-Fargo Building still stands completely empty--having lost its last two occupants (the bank and a law firm) to the new Wells Fargo Building across the street.

Heading west on 23rd Street, I passed the now-abandoned Descente warehouse. On the bright side, there was almost no Sunday traffic on this part of the street.

Farther north, along Grant Ave., a prominent sign announces the ongoing Ogden River restoration project, and reminds us of who our mayor and city council members are--or rather were, as of last December. The sign also reminds us that the total Phase 1 cost is $2.1 million, and that the project is being funded entirely by federal, state, and local government entities. (The sign doesn’t mention the private matching funds that were promised but never delivered.)

The river itself is looking pretty nice, for a construction zone. I’m optimistic that this project will achieve its purpose, making this three-block stretch of the river an attractive amenity. The coming RAMP-funded high-adventure playground should add to the attraction.

Surrounding the river, of course, are the dozens of abandoned homes still owned by Gadi Leshem and/or his associates. Leshem City looks about the same as it did this time last year. Once again nobody is cutting the grass, but somehow I doubt that Mr. Leshem has received any threatening letters from Code Enforcement.

On the west side of Wall Ave., the Walmart site seems to be gradually coming along. The weeds are gone and the dirt is looking very smooth, ready for an enormous parking lot.

Across 20th Street from the Walmart site, the site of Ogden’s promised Velodrome is (of course) untouched. Also apparently owned by Mr. Leshem, this piece of land looks nice and green this time of year. Too bad about the accumulation of trash.

Last but not least, I’m pleased to report that I found the last of the 12 Scavenger Hunt buildings. And of additional historical interest, this building was adorned by an authentic Lift Ogden banner--a relic of the historic Ogden Gondola War of 2006. We can only assume that had the gondola been built as proposed, all of the projects mentioned above would now be complete, and all downtown buildings fully occupied. Sigh.

Ogden City Miscellany

A few items that will interest all Ogdenophiles

By Dan Schroeder

1. Full Ogden City Council agenda packets are now online!

As we were recently promised, the City Council web site now allows citizens to download not only the bare-bones agendas for upcoming meetings, but also the full “packets” of detailed information that are provided to the council members themselves. Check out the information for this coming Tuesday’s meeting here.

The council’s main agenda item for this Tuesday is the annual Capital Improvement Plan, authorizing expenditures on major new projects and infrastructure. As you review the CIP, remember that most of it is merely an unfunded “wish list”; what matters most is the proposed budget for FY 2011, highlighted in gray on pages 34 through 60 of the agenda packet pdf file.

Some of the CIP items proposed for funding include Urban Riverway Enhancements ($50,500), Downtown Signage and Amenities ($98,950), River Run Neighborhood Park ($533,000), fire station seismic retrofits ($2,227,400), “Critical Project Contingency” ($101,000), various street and sidewalk projects, Lorin Farr Pool Drain Replacement ($139,855), MWC Pool Drain Replacement ($12,250), Tennis Court Resurfacing ($55,400), Downtown Equestrian Trail System ($2,020,000), Ogden City Velodrome ($14,140,000), airport improvements ($310,175), Renovation of Mt. Ogden Golf Course ($505,000), sewer projects ($1,043,000), and water projects ($255,750). The Ice Climbing Tower is also down for $1,500,000, but it appears that the City Council intends to delete that item based on the administration’s admission that it is “no longer a viable project” (pdf page 10).

I highly recommend that readers download the full agenda packet (2 MB), review it carefully, and discuss its details in the comments below.

2. Tour de Drome coordinator contract

Speaking of the Velodrome, I recently obtained from the city a copy of the $5000 contract with Cindy Yorgason for coordinating the recent “Tour de Drome” fundraiser. Most of the information in this contract was previously reported, but it also clarifies that in addition to paying Yorgason’s $5000 fee, the city will reimburse all documented expenses for the event. I hope to follow-up and eventually learn the rest of the financial details about this event and about the Velodrome more generally.

3. Historic Building Scavenger Hunt ends Wednesday!

Meanwhile, I’m about to head out on my bike to try to finish up this year’s Historic Building Scavenger Hunt. If you’d like to participate, you can download a pdf of the brochure here. Using the map and clues for guidance, try to find all 12 of the historic buildings shown in the closely cropped photos. Turn in your completed brochure by Wednesday, May 12, to be eligible for a prize drawing. Everyone who finds even one building is eligible for most of the prizes, but only those who find all 12 are eligible for the grand prize. This annual event is sponsored by our friends at the Ogden City Landmarks Commission and the Weber County Heritage Foundation. You can pick up a paper copy of the brochure during business hours in the Planning Department on the ground floor of the Municipal Building.