Construction crews begin demolition of Emporium Building in downtown Logan, Friday, Jan. 28, 2022 (Will Feelright)
LOGAN – It’s the end of an era in downtown Logan.
True to Mayor Holly Daines’ prediction of early January, demolition crews began work taking down the Emporium building on North Main St. on Friday.
At the Logan City Council’s first meeting of the New Year on Jan. 4, Daines promised that demolition of the vacant Emporium building would begin during January.
The demolition of the Emporium is another giant step in Daines’ ambitious plan for the revitalization of downtown Logan.
The removal of that structure will make room for the construction of the so-called Center Block Plaza, a gathering place and entertainment venue for local residents and visitors.
The future site of the downtown plaza is directly across Main St. from the Logan Tabernacle. Five buildings of varying ages and historic integrity now occupy that site at 41, 45, 47, 55 and 67 North Main addresses.
The historic buildings at 41 and 45 North Main are slated for a $1.6 million facelift and possible sale to private restaurateurs.
The Emporium at 55 North Main was constructed in 1977 to replace an older structure that had housed a JC Penny Co. department store since 1946. That late 1970s remodel had included a complete redesign of the building’s façade and gutting of the structure’s interior to create a mini-mall of about 20 stores.
Also slated for demolition with the Emporium are adjacent structures at 47 and 67 North Main.
Built in 1898, the structure at 47 North Main originally housed a harness and saddle shop and later became a jewelry store. It was home to Baugh Jewelry for about three decades ending in the 1970s.
North of the Emporium, the building at 67 North Main was built in 1890 for the City Drug Company. Starting in 1955, Gallenkamps Shoes occupied the structure until the late 1970s.
Logan City purchased all of the aforementioned structures between 2016 and 2019, with the original intention of relocating the city library to that site.
Since the alternative plan for the Center Block Plaza project was approved in spring of 2021, Logan’s redevelopment agency has invested more than $4.3 million in the plaza project, including about $1.3 million for the demolition of the Emporium building and adjacent structures to the north and south; about $2.1 million for construction of the public plaza; around $400,000 for the portable ice rink; and about $440,000 for construction of an outdoor stage and an administration building.
Construction of the Center Block Plaza is expected to begin in spring, with about $2 million of its costs defrayed by private contributions.