Arts United Center added to National Register of Historic Places
The National Park Service (NPS) formally listed the Arts United Center on the National Register of Historic Places with National Significance.
Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation's historic places worthy of preservation and part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America's historic and archeological resources. The NPS recognized the Arts United Center as the
“Fort Wayne Performing Arts Theatre” in its most recent list of approved additions to the National Register.
"It is a great honor for our community to have the Arts United Center recognized as nationally significant in the world of historic buildings,” said Dan Ross, President and CEO of Arts United of Greater Fort Wayne which owns and operates the building. “This is a huge milestone and a result of several years of effort. Listing on the National Register is also a condition of being able to receive federal historic tax credits, which is an important part of our funding for the project to expand and modernize the Arts United Center."
Designed for the city of Fort Wayne by renowned architect Louis Kahn and opened in 1973, the Arts United Center is a historic venue featuring a performing arts theatre that has served as the home stage of the Fort Wayne Ballet and Fort Wayne Civic Theatre and regularly hosted dance competitions, community and civic events and more. Designed by one of the most revered architects of the 20th century, Kahn’s Arts United Center is his only commission of any kind in the Midwest, as well as his only theater commission in the world. In approving the Arts United Center for listing on the National Register, the NPS specifically recognized its “embodiment of [Kahn’s] more mature design philosophy and ideas” and “its use as a dedicated performance space.”
Arts United of Greater Fort Wayne is in the midst of a comprehensive project to expand and modernize the venue. The project includes the revitalization and expansion of rehearsal studios, significant upgrades to technical and event production capabilities, and much-needed improvements in accessibility for people of all abilities – all while maintaining the venue’s historic value and original design.
Meredith Arms Bzdak, who prepared the nomination for the NPS, is a principal at Princeton, NJ-based Mills + Schnoering Architects, LLC, an architectural firm specializing in historic preservation, and President-Elect of the Docomomo US Board of Directors, the United States chapter of Docomomo International, a non-profit organization dedicated to the documentation and conservation of buildings, sites, and neighborhoods of the modern movement. “We hope this recognition helps even more people understand just how special the Arts United Center is as a theater and as part of Kahn’s portfolio,” said Bzdak. “The building has a great story to tell and truly provides visitors with a magical experience. It’s an honor to be a part of the team working on this critical project.” “Thanks to Kahn’s distinct vision and design, the Arts United Center’s form has stood the test of time,” added Zach Benedict, President of Fort Wayne-based MKM Architecture + Design, the lead local architect on the Arts United Center modernization project. “It is certainly worthy of listing on the National Register – and certainly worthy of investment in its long-term viability as the heart and soul of northeast Indiana’s arts and culture community.”
The official designation can be found online.