"DeNova Homes wants to tear down the 79-year-old Temple of Mt. Diablo Masonic Lodge to make way for 220 condos on the corner of Galindo Street and Concord Boulevard." Despite the best efforts of the historic society to preserve the structure, it still faces destruction to make way for a reinvigorated downtown.
"'We want to see a downtown area very lively during the evenings and not vacant," said Mayor Susan Bonilla. "When you have people living downtown, you achieve that.'"
So instead of creating property people have value in, they create condo's for upscale professionals who -don't- at our current epoch of human history join or belong. they don't form communal bonds.
So replace a building which may not be doing that very thing as it once did -building a community- and replace it with something that pretty much won't (yet another souless line of condo's)
how greedy are they to make this profit on the back of this historical building?
City denies state request to study Masonic Temple
By Ryan Huff
CONTRA COSTA TIMES
Concord officials plan to allow demolition of a historic downtown building, even though a state agency says doing so without an environmental impact report would violate California law.
Follow the law, or follow the line of property tax dollars?
The city's redevelopment agency bought the Masonic Temple in 1999 and floated several concepts -- such as building a hotel and turning the temple into a bar and restaurant. That plan didn't go far because the market for a hotel never materialized.
Today the nonprofit Gallery Concord leases the city building to display its watercolor paintings and sculptures.
the best i can say is at least this wasn't another Kelo styled production...they did buy the building. But i think the spirit of the history of the building...
Numerous cities make a good profit building around good quality historical landmark's of the city and I think this could be no different.
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