Odd Fellows Hall's move in downtown Salt Lake put on hold

Odd Fellows Hall is staying home for the holidays.

The historic building's already delayed move across Market Street is on hold — likely until early next year — until the relocation route is properly prepared to handle the 5 million-pound load.

That leaves the 117-year-old bulding in limbo — and 11 feet off the ground.

"Because the schedule has been extended into the winter, conditions have changed," said Alan Rindlisbacher, marketing director for Sandy-based contractor Layton Construction.

A civil engineer has been contracted to evaluate the travel route, and those findings are being used to determine "proper solutions and schedule" for the building's move, Rindlisbacher said.

Emmert International, the heavy-haul transportation and rigging company subcontracted by Layton to conduct the move, has not had crews at the site since before Thanksgiving.

"We're waiting for the load path to be prepared — the ground we're going to be moving the building over," said Terry Emmert, vice president of the Clackamas, Ore., company. "We're trying to make sure that everything is being prepped properly."

Those duties, Emmert said, fall to Layton Construction. Until Emmert officials are satisfied that the ground will support the weight of the 117-year-old building, Odd Fellows Hall will remain at 39 W. Market St.

"Until everything is ready, you don't want to move that building from where it's been sitting for 100 years," Emmert said.

Layton Construction was hired by the U.S. General Services Administration to move the three-story brick structure to make way for a new U.S. District Court building on the south side of Market Street.

Crews began preparing the building for the move in March, with the relocation originally expected to take place in late May or early June. The most recent timeline had the building moving across Market Street earlier this month.

Now, Emmert crews aren't expected to return to the site before January.

"It definitely has taken longer than anyone expected," Emmert said.

Timelines for such large moves often have to be revised several times throughout the process, he said.

Rindlisbacher said Layton and Emmert officials are in contact daily and working toward getting the project under way again.

"We're dealing with the fragile nature of the building, we're dealing with the travel route, and we're dealing with some of the engineering issues related to getting the building across the street," he said. "We're negotiating those issues with Emmert International and attempting to determine how we accomplish those tasks."