Capitol comfort
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Wednesday, December 12, 2007 | 
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No Comments [ Add Comment ]By Loretta Park
Standard-Examiner Davis Bureau
lpark@standard.net
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By Loretta Park
Standard-Examiner Davis Bureau
lpark@standard.net
» Story View
By Loretta Park
Standard-Examiner Davis Bureau
lpark@standard.net
SALT LAKE CITY -- Stacked and labeled boxes wait on representatives' desks for the movers to come later this week and move them to the almost-renovated Capitol.
The Senate boxes are already in the Capitol, but legislators are still working in the west building on Capitol Hill because computer lines have not been connected in the restored building.
Over the next few weeks, legislators will move into new offices -- or their designated desks -- while nearly 300 construction workers add the finishing touches to the $215 million, three-year restoration of the Capitol.
Like other legislators, Rep. Paul Ray, R-Clinton, cannot wait for this year's session to begin Jan. 21,and it's not because of budget talks, property tax discussions or proposed bills.
It's because the public will be watching from the gallery.
Having the public view the sessions from the gallery and not behind glass is a good thing, said House Speaker Greg Curtis, R-Sandy.
"With the windows, I felt like we were in the zoo," he said of the rooms the public sat in during the last session.
Ray was among the legislators Tuesday personally moving into the Capitol the items they've stored at their homes for the past three years.
"My wife is extremely happy because I've been clearing stuff out of the house," Ray said.
"I'm glad I skipped going to the gym this morning," he said as he walked down four stories of stairs from his office to the underground tunnel that connects the buildings on Capitol Hill.
Ray's office overlooks Main Street. He is still trying to figure out how he previously managed to squeeze two boxes of notes, books and other information into one small desk.
His new office has cherry wood furniture, including a roll-top desk, which will hold his laptop.
Ray and other committee chairmen, as well as House and Senate leaders, have offices so they can meet with constituents.
For the past three years, when constituents wanted to meet with committee chairmen, they would either talk in the hallway or find an empty room in the west building.
"We won't be nearly as cramped," said Rep. Brad Dee, R-Washington Terrace.
"There is no down side. It's a grand old building and amazingly beautiful. I think people of Utah should be extremely proud of that building. It's a great example of what restoration can do to older buildings."
New legislators, like Rep. Paul Neuenschwander, R-Bountiful, will still work from a desk on the floor and not have an office this year.
But getting inside the Capitol to work is still a No. 1 priority.
"I'm excited about the opportunity to meet people in a much better set of circumstances," Neuenschwander said.
The grandeur of the building -- with its old paintings, sculptures and other artwork -- makes going to work a little nicer, he said.
Rep. Ben Ferry, R-Corinne, and Sen. Sheldon Killpack, R-Syracuse, said they have missed the elementary students and Boy Scout groups that came on field trips during legislative sessions.
"It was fun to have them come into chambers and see what was going on," said Killpack, whose boxes were moved Monday into the one office "that is literally not accessible."
He's been told he will have access within a week.
From what they've seen of the restoration, legislators say they're pleased with the attention to detail.
"The fireplace has been restored in the lounge area," Killpack said. "In the main rotunda, the opaque glass on the floor brings in natural light. I want to say it looks spectacular, but that seems passé, but it's truly spectacular."
Curtis said House leaders have asked all legislators to be patient about moving in so crews can complete their work.
"It doesn't do us any good to be in the way while they're putting on the finishing touches," he said.
Dave Marshall, project manager for Jacobsen Hunt Joint Venture, said construction workers have put in 16-hour days, seven days a week, over the past several months to finish the project.
"We have a lot of tired people," he said.
Dave Hart, executive director of the Capitol Preservation Board and architect of the restoration, said, "It's been a long road, but a lot of fun. Right now, though, it's nerve-racking."
Help requested
The Capitol opens to the public on Jan. 4, Statehood Day. Volunteers are needed for the Capitol open house, Jan. 5-12. About 55 people are needed for each 3 1/2-hour shift. To sign up or for more information, go to www.regonline.com/capitolvolunteers.
Statehouse smarts
* The original building was designed by Richard Karl August Kletting in 1912.
* The groundbreaking was Dec. 26, 1912.
* The Capitol was completed July 3, 1915.
* The $212 million restoration project began Sept. 1, 2004.
* Restoration architects are the Capitol Restoration Group.
* Restoration contractors are Jacobsen Hunt Joint Venture.
* About 280 subcontractors worked on the project.
* The building weighed 130 million pounds before the restoration and now weighs 170 million pounds.
* More than 5,000 people worked on the project over three years.
* Three hundred people are finishing the project.
* There are 265 isolators -- each weighing 5,000 pounds -- under the building. Isolators stabilize the building in the event of an earthquake.
* Removal of the isolation locking plates required 80 man hours and removal of 16,960 bolts, totaling more than 20 tons of bolts, washers and plates.
* The reinforcing steel used in the concrete weighs about 8 million pounds.
* The concrete used in the base isolation totaled 37,484 cubic yards, which would cover 5.4 football fields 3 feet deep.
* The original seagulls have been restored in the rotunda area. The wingspan of the birds range from 4 feet to 5 feet.
* The domed ceiling of the rotunda has been repainted to its original colors and composition.
* The floor of the rotunda was restored to its 1915 glass floor and is safe to walk on.
* The carpets in the House and Senate chambers are designed to replicate the originals in color and weave.
* The House chamber has two new voting/display screens, which are 103-inch plasma screens -- the first plasma screens of that size to be installed in any legislative chamber in the nation.
* The House and Senate galleries have flat-screen monitors that provide information to the public.
Source: Capitol Preservation Board
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