Reader comments
Fire destroys old Club DV8, building to be torn down

Anonymous | 12:39 a.m. Jan. 24, 2008

i was there it was crazy go SLFD

Sad, but... | 12:46 a.m. Jan. 24, 2008

Glad to hear no one was hurt and that the damage was contained as much as was possible.

Let's hope insurance comes through. It's sad that the building couldn't be saved - but probably the best possible ending under the circumstances.

Dinner theater in 1970s? | 8:48 a.m. Jan. 24, 2008

Wasn't this also the site of the fairly-successful dinner theater in the late 1970s? I remember going there at least once, to see faded TV stars in stage plays. IIRC, one time we saw Tab Hunter and Yvonne DiCarlo.

Comments continue below

Todd Nuke 'Em | 9:39 a.m. Jan. 24, 2008

That's where I used to DJ for X96 night. And I saw Ned's Atomic Dustbin there, plus a bunch of other great shows. Memories...

Skip | 10:28 a.m. Jan. 24, 2008

You rocked that club Nuke 'em! Hate to see a great club go down.

DV-ATE (By fire) | 10:37 a.m. Jan. 24, 2008

Boy, I remember seeing Badly Drawn Boy there. What a fun little spot. Too bad it had to go the way of all the earth. Guess the second law of thermodynamics is real after all.

barrusjl | 10:51 a.m. Jan. 24, 2008

I believe it was. Was it called Tiffany's Attic?

otreblig | 11:05 a.m. Jan. 24, 2008

After my extensive research of historic SLC in the past few months I sincerely hope the owner will have to restore this building. We have lost far too many beautiful landmarks that if preserved would have contributed far more than the ARCHITECTURAL ATROCITIES allowed to replace them! Cultural trespassing at its worst!

Anonymous | 11:41 a.m. Jan. 24, 2008

Arson?

white pants | 11:48 a.m. Jan. 24, 2008

ANDREW WK!!!....need i say more?

Suspicious | 11:49 a.m. Jan. 24, 2008

I can't believe this vacant downtown building burned down and that they can't do an investigation because the building is to unsafe to enter. We need to get CSI involved.

Are you kidding? | 11:51 a.m. Jan. 24, 2008

otreblig, get a life! If you loved the building so much, put your money where your mouth is and rebuild it yourself at your expense.

The owner of this property owes you nothing.

People who want to preserve their past are so happy to do it with other people's money.

Fubecca | 12:00 p.m. Jan. 24, 2008

Fantastic job saving surrounding buildings. SLCFD proved themselves to among the best Firefighters around!

Sera | 12:05 p.m. Jan. 24, 2008

I have been away from SLC about 10 years and trying to get my bearings, where was DV8? Was it by the old Salt Palace?

The Californian | 12:31 p.m. Jan. 24, 2008

Remembering seeing Green Day there in '93, an unknown Beck in that same year, and X twice in '93-4. Sad in how it ended, but the memories remain. This place was the Whiskey a Go-Go/CBGB of SLC!

Christina | 12:43 p.m. Jan. 24, 2008

I moved away from SLC awhile ago, and seeing this article made me want to cry. Like Todd Nuke'Em, I also worked in radio (just over at Citadel instead) and we did so many events over there. This is devastating, I was upset enough when it closed. But this...heartbreaking.

RIP Club DV8

Ing | 12:45 p.m. Jan. 24, 2008

I never went to DV8, but the mention of the Dead Goat Saloon brought back some memories. My band used to play there quite a lot in the mid 90s. Sounds like it's out of business, which is too bad. That was a great little place.

It's also too bad that the DV8 building can't be saved. That's a piece of the city's architectural history that can't be replaced. (When was that thing built, in the 20s? 30s?) If there's any way possible, it should be restored. Easier said than done, I know...but still, they just don't make buildings like that anymore--especially that would look that good architecturally after so many years.

Where is the webmaster link? | 1:31 p.m. Jan. 24, 2008

Is anyone else completely annoyed that there is a link indicating 15 photos are available in the gallery, but only one shows up? Or am I the only one having this problem?

Dinner theater name | 1:33 p.m. Jan. 24, 2008

I guess it could have been Tiffany's Attic (which did bring in low-level stars for its dinner theater productions). Tiffany's WAS in Arrow Press Square.....

Someone mentioned Gaslight Dinner Theater. But I don't remember where that was.

I think we're seeing the end of Arrow Press Square, what with that ugly building built in front of it years ago, and half the buildings now empty. "The Blue Whale that swallowed Arrow Press"....I can still remember the news stories.

To Sera: | 1:34 p.m. Jan. 24, 2008

It was right across the street from the Salt Palace on West Temple.

slcut84109 | 2:09 p.m. Jan. 24, 2008

Four words..."owner had no insurance".

Goodbye building, goodbye rennovation, goodbye restoration.

Jimmy Z | 2:43 p.m. Jan. 24, 2008

I used to buy all my concert tickets at a ticket
brokers office in that building. I believe the
guys name was Bob.Does anyone no what happened to
that business they were in that building for years
selling Utah Jazz, theater, and concert tickets.
I stopped in there a while back and the building was
empty. Everytime I bought tickets in that building
it was like stepping back in time with that old
elevator. I also saw a lot of concertts in DV8 when
Karen ran the show. too bad we will miss that building

Jordan T. | 2:49 p.m. Jan. 24, 2008

Club DV8 was a dump. This fire was a blessing in disguise. Personally, I'm glad to see that old, ugly building get burned down.

But, with all due respect, Club DV8 was the place where I first discovered Nelly Furtado's music back in 2000-2001, and which is where I've seen a lot of cool DJ's and bands perform.

That said, it seems like much of Salt Lake's clubs seem to be on life-support these days. For the most part, they're poorly publicized and, as the article eluded to, they're also poorly maintained.

We need someone like Salt Lake Mayor Ralph Becker to breathe new life into this town. And hopefully, a developer will build some new condos on the site, and not some ugly strip mall.

Anonymous | 3:00 p.m. Jan. 24, 2008

how do you know no insurance? link or it did not happen

To Anonymous | 3:42 p.m. Jan. 24, 2008

The owner has been quoted several different times as saying the building was not insured.

You want proof?
You can Google as easily as we can.
You can watch the news as easily as we can.

SDP | 3:57 p.m. Jan. 24, 2008

Anonymous 3:00

It was reported on broadcast media (I heard it on the radio this morning) that the building was not insured.

TV viewer | 4:13 p.m. Jan. 24, 2008

Anonymous: This morning's news reported that the owner HAD NO INSURANCE, either to the building that burned down or the one next to it that he also owns!

Paul and John Gibby | 4:22 p.m. Jan. 24, 2008

My brother and I read this article and were really bummed out. We remember DV8 very well and spent many evenings there in the early 90's. We saw some great acts like DP, Run Train, BJ, FUBAR, DonkeyShow, and others. DV8 made these acts famous!

Jim Cannon | 4:27 p.m. Jan. 24, 2008

I spent a week there one sunday. Watched Led Zeppelin perform there one time. The club was legendary. It's a shame to see the place burn down. Hopefully the city can fund a restoration, then maybe Led Zeppelin will come back!

DrDre | 5:38 p.m. Jan. 24, 2008

led zeppelin??!! They did not perform at DV8.. it opened in 1989!

Look a little deeper.. | 6:58 p.m. Jan. 24, 2008

Just because the building wasn't insured doesn't neutralize the fishy scent. Life is not black and white. The owners could claim a huge loss on their taxes, or there could be other deals, or the property owner could have been flat-out lying. Who's going to question it because if it was on TV then it MUST BE TRUE! That area is prime and currently being considered for a cultural arts center. Its always cheaper to bulldoze and build new rather than renovate and preserve, which was their realized responsibility when they bought the place. Don't be too shocked when the Deseret Building suffers a similar 'accident'..

Former Resident | 7:00 p.m. Jan. 24, 2008

This is typical for SLC. The city needs an ordinace that addresses these types of buildings. Once a building (business or house) is considered unsafe for use, all the owner has to do is secure it. It can stand forever, fall down, or burn down. Only then does the city take any action. That has not, is not, and will continue to not be acceptible - until some changes are made. Perhaps the new Administration could see this happen - NOW!

a native | 7:26 p.m. Jan. 24, 2008

To Look a Little Deeper It's nice to see someone that knows how to think

Thank a Fireman | 10:11 p.m. Jan. 24, 2008

Tough fire, good save. How 'bout more kudos to the SLCFD!

Sean Boy Walton eX96 | 10:47 p.m. Jan. 24, 2008

Wow. DV8 gone???? Not the memories though. I spent many evenings up in that rickety DJ booth, taking requests for NIN "Closer" ad nauseam, waiting for the club to go up in flames on any given night. The patrons knew how to party.

Sure, for a dance club DV8 left plenty to desire, but as a live venue it was a classic. There wasn't a bad seat in the house. Someone already mentioned the great Green Day show (Mazzy Star played the same night at the Bar & Grill). A couple other standouts were Rage Against the Machine with House of Pain...and my personal favorite Quicksand and Seaweed co-headlining. They were like twin locomotives barreling through that stack of bricks. Shout outs to all the DV8 locals back in the '90s!

Juie V. | 5:20 p.m. Jan. 25, 2008

So sad to see such a beautiful building go up in smoke. However I have 10 fond years of Thursday night disco and the orginal DV8 Dance Team. You know who you are! We ruled the stage. My sincere condolances to Karen and Mike, I am sure they are the saddest to see the building gone. And Garret, you where the best bartender ever. My favorite gig at DV8...Narousis.

JV, oldest living member of Club DV8

Anonymous | 11:13 a.m. Jan. 26, 2008

Great job for skills and effort to the Unified Fire Authority and the Salt Lake City Fire Departments...

selahdejah | 5:43 a.m. Jan. 27, 2008

acroma and evanescence. one of the best shows of my life!!!! :) its sad to see so many clubs leave us. the zephyr and now dv8. i loved the dv8. a great place to see bands and chill. i hope it can be restorded somehow. so many memories. :(

ygtSquat | 3:46 a.m. May 13, 2008

This building was full of transents, squatters and junkies. i lived in here for a few months last summer. It was one of the best places ever and when i was here it still had electricity. I'll put the little money i have on the fact that a homebum started the fire.

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