Reuse ideas for the old planetarium

[Sonic Death Monkey]

The old planetarium is an architectural gem that is currently being used as a storage shed. Let's think of some good reuse possibilities.

Good ideas:
Pub or restaurant
Museum
Music venue

Goofy idea:
Bring back the old light shows with Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd music, for the sake of 70s campy nostalgia!


Photo courtesy of newfangled from his old "Junk or Jewel" thread:

[armin]

Holodeck.
Turn the thing into a holographic theatre. It'd be neat personally.

http://www.musion.co.uk/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkOffj04xGA

First planetarium in Canada and it's trashed now. While Pink Floyd laser shows are retro, if you did a holographic display system on the ceiling, it'd allow designers to create interactive music shows which would be like laser light shows 2.0.

'It's so cool, you don't even need drugs to enjoy it'.

You'd have a great audience for something like that. It'd look like the roof at Hogwarts.

[Thomas Hinderks]

Well Armin

For once you and I agree

Neat idea

Tom

[IanO]

how about use it as a planetarium?

[bpeters]

Where is this?

[norwoodguy]

^Coronation Park. It's the structure with the silvery roof and elliptical lawn in front of it.

http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&hq=&...22423&t=h&z=16

Back in the days before IMAX, internet and video games this was probably one of the coolest virtual reality experiences for a kid.

[KC]

Move it to Fort Edmonton or - to the new Edmonton Airport Lands development site.

[norwoodguy]

Originally Posted by IanO

how about use it as a planetarium?

That would be ideal given its historical significance. Perhaps it should be gifted to the UofA's astronomy department?

[PJC]

Resto-pub is my vote. As I noted on SSP, nothing of any character or ambience anywhere near here.

Planetarium is tempting but the Space Sciences Centre fills that bill and IIRC the world wasn't exactly beating a path to the QE's door when it was just that 3 decades ago.

[norwoodguy]

Originally Posted by Mercucio

Resto-pub is my vote. As I noted on SSP, nothing of any character or ambience anywhere near here.

If that is the case would anyone go out of their way to visit said Resto-pub?

[Jeremy]

Originally Posted by norwoodguy

That would be ideal given its historical significance. Perhaps it should be gifted to the UofA's astronomy department?

Or to the Catholic School Board / One Kingsway.

[PJC]

^^ The area could use a place with some character and ambience. It would not have a lot of competition. Also plenty of (free & convenient) parking on the north side of the Queen E.

[norwoodguy]

Originally Posted by Mercucio

^^ The area could use a place with some character and ambience. It would not have a lot of competition. Also plenty of (free & convenient) parking on the north side of the Queen E.

In my books the park is a form of ambience although not probably not of the sort that you have in mind. Not sure having the planetarium repurposed as a pub/resto necessarily adds to the ambience since it would be hidden inside the park.

[PJC]

^ Lots of room for a patio there which would take advantage of the park ambience - which I think is great BTW.

IMHO this park is underutilized (And always has been - I went to Shep in the70s. Other than Phys Ed at the tennis courts, don't remember ever using it, and I lived nearby.) and something like this would be a traffic builder.

However, not married to the pub/resto concept by any means.

[armin]

I went to Shep for a year.

That area is greatly underused and has a lot of potential.
It's a good place to take a date. It's quiet, secluded, and during the summer, it's a nice little place to walk around.

The planetarium along with the observatory and the science centre would make a great little themed 'science' park.

The planetarium has a history but it's really outdated in comparison to the technology available now. It's such a great building though that seeing it run down is just depressing.

You could do so much fun stuff by incorporating a new visual display system. Turn it into a projection gallery for interactive media installations even. Do a cross collab with GMCC or NAIT or U of A. They all have animation departments.

How about a holographic projected planetarium where kids can look up and see crazy good animations to the stars, but then be able to physically interact with the display.
That would be fun.

PS: Thanks Tom, I saw you on tv. You got your point across well.

[Thomas Hinderks]

Originally Posted by armin

PS: Thanks Tom, I saw you on tv. You got your point across well.

Thanks Armin

[Blueline]

hot little cocktail and music-stage venue

[Sonic Death Monkey]

Just one argument in favor of a resto...how successful is the Stanley Park Teahouse in Vancouver?

[PJC]

^ Very.

[norwoodguy]

Originally Posted by Sonic Death Monkey

Just one argument in favor of a resto...how successful is the Stanley Park Teahouse in Vancouver?

Coronation Park is by no means comparable in terms of a destination that Stanley Park is.

[RRH]

Would the city allow rezoning it to a restaurant with a patio? Isn't that why all our patios are next to major roads and bus lanes?

[Sonic Death Monkey]

If they build the new velodrome in Coronation Park, maybe they can incorporate the planetarium into the plan.
http://www.edmontonjournal.com/sport...439/story.html

[KC]

the park from the air...




OK so how do I get photos to show up?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/19739317@N03/5487247238

[PJC]

^ Checked the link with the picture. It really is a very pretty park with scads of potential. There's no question it's underutilized. Some sort of destination with the planetarium would be a good idea.

Most of the traffic is probably generated by the Space Sciences Centre and it's obvious from this picture that it largely cuts off the park and isn't really that integrated with it.

[KC]

I think the placement of the Space Science Centre was a shame since it obliterated some of the sidewalk. (Does anyone know anything about what it represented? See aerial photo link above.)

It's all a bit like one artist painting over another artist's work. But then, didn't Cardinal face the same thing when they slapped that addition onto the side of his work of 'art'. Seems so disrespectful.

http://www.djcarchitect.com/portfoli...ntonspace.html

[blainehamilton]

Wow. Never new this existing. One of the drawbacks of not experiencing my childhood in Edmonton.


I can't see a restaurant or pub being even remotely successful in this location. It's just too remote.

An open stage concert venue would work. Same with repurposing it as a small type of museum or gallery.

How does the ownership of The Telus World of Science and this facility work? I don't understand why it hasn't been integrated into the Telus facilities in the past...

[Sonic Death Monkey]

Bump...bring back the classic rock laser light shows to the Planetarium!

[Edmcowboy11]

So I read the history of the planetarium and it's interesting. I'm also glad that the building is on the register for historic buildings which gives it some protection. One big question I have, why did it close?

[Sonic Death Monkey]

^ If you read the same history I did:
http://www.telusplanet.net/public/hg...P/history.html
- attendance fell
- only seated 65 people
- built swanky new TWOS next to it that served same purpose and much more

At the very least, I hope TWOS turns it into some kind of public use again. Looking at their long-term plans, I think they will but don't know what.

[KC]

Originally Posted by blainehamilton

Wow. Never new this existing. One of the drawbacks of not experiencing my childhood in Edmonton.


I can't see a restaurant or pub being even remotely successful in this location. It's just too remote.

An open stage concert venue would work. Same with repurposing it as a small type of museum or gallery.

How does the ownership of The Telus World of Science and this facility work? I don't understand why it hasn't been integrated into the Telus facilities in the past...

In my view you've hit upon a common problem, the city putting its buildings like rec centres off the main streets. They need prime locations to draw people in and to show them off to the world.