Restored church a work of art
First Presbyterian Church, on the northeast corner of South Temple and C Street, has just come out of the first phase of a $5 million restoration project sporting back-lighted and cleaned stained-glass windows, an enlarged chancel for public concerts, a refurbished day-care center, air conditioning throughout and a combined parlor/chapel/reception area to host a variety of church and community gatherings.
Laura Shafer is coordinator of the restoration celebration, which began Friday night with a concert and continues today from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. with a free children's carnival, free tours and organ recitals every half hour, a cafe and coffeehouse and a Scottish auction. Those who want to participate may pay the $10 donation to the renovation fund and will be given tickets for the silent auction, with all proceeds going toward the restoration's second phase. An adult "prom" featuring big-band and swing music will begin at 7 p.m. Dress is semiformal and admission is $10.
The celebration will culminate with Sunday's 4 p.m. dedication service.
One third of the initial $3 million came from the congregation, Shafer said, and the rest was the result of "great response from the community." The Eccles Foundation offered a matching grant, and other donors included Jon and Karen Huntsman, James Sorenson, the Episcopal Diocese of Utah, The Catholic Foundation of Utah and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Fund raising for the additional $2 million second phase of restoration is now under way. No time line has been set for final completion, Shafer said.
Presbyterians first settled in the Salt Lake Valley in 1869, and the church was formally organized in November 1871. The first building constructed by members located several blocks from the current site at 200 South and 200 East. That building housed what became the forerunners both of Westminster College and Wasatch Academy in Mt. Pleasant as part of the church's local ministry.
By the turn of the century, an expanding membership outgrew the first building and members approved construction of the new English-Scottish Gothic Revival style building on the current site. Construction began with a cornerstone laying in June 1903, and the building was completed three years later. Red sandstone was quarried from Red Butte Canyon and hauled to the site, providing a distinctly different flavor for the building's exterior from the Cathedral of the Madeleine next door.
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