Newark Symphony Hall has unveiled the designs for its exterior renovation—part of a five-year, $50 million project to overhaul the facility for its 100th birthday in 2025.
The hall, at 1020 Broad St., was built in 1925 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1977. Located in an Opportunity Zone, it expects the renovation to be financed by a mix of philanthropy, tax credits and other state and federal programs.
The project is expected to create 500 jobs and assist 50 local small businesses. It is also expected to create tenant space and other features on-site.
“With the help of historic preservation experts Clarke Caton Hintz and our wider project team, we’ll be revitalizing our corner of Broad Street while modernizing — and paying tribute to — our historic venue, an anchor institution for the city,” NSH CEO and President Taneshia Nash Laird said in a prepared statement.
Clarke Caton Hintz, a Trenton-based architectural firm, is handling the design, which includes a new marquee and streetscape on Broad Street. The marquee will be reminiscent of the one that stood at NSH in the 1960s and 1970s, according to a news release.
“Our idea behind the entry canopy/dome is to think of it as a delicate, yet bold structure, a kind of beacon that lights up the entire entry sequence and invites everyone to come in,” John Hatch, principal with CCH, said in a statement. “The dome’s curved glass and chevron shape, along with the creative streetscape, make the hall a gathering agent and, surely, one of the city’s most unique and historic attractions.”
Newark Symphony Hall is owned by the city of Newark and operated by the nonprofit Newark Performing Arts Corp.
