Date: 2/12/18
Time: 4:00 pm - 7:00 pm (speakers at 6:00)
Location: Tenth East Senior Center, 238 S. 1000 E

In the interest of celebrating the obligatory day of courtship and candy hearts—and in efforts to shout out general affection for a particularly pretty mid-century spot—SL Modern is hosting a pop-up tour at one of Salt Lake’s staple downtown spots.

Built in 1963 (and expanded in 1977), the Tenth East Senior Center is the work of designer Burtch W. Beall, Jr., architect Paul L. Lemoine, and planner George S. Nicolatus. At its conception, the center was made to replace the rapidly-aging Elk’s Boys and Girls Club, and as a result, it’s flanked by a city park and two tennis courts to this day.

The single-story, flat-roofed building blends near-seamlessly into its quiet, residential neighborhood, and—using the structure’s L shape to its advantage—also backs right up into the hill on which it sits.

High ceilings, bright interior spaces, a clerestory, and a few full-glass walls…

No, this isn’t your average senior center. And, luckily for all architecture aficionados, SL Modern has teamed up to hold it open to the public for a tour, live music, light fare, and an slam-bang architectural presentation.

See, it’s important we stay hip to these little gems that’re sprinkled throughout our city before they get swept away to make room for the new.

So get here, get hip, and let's do some preserving.