Egyptian Theater Executive Director Randy Barton said he arrived at the building around 6 p.m. Aug. 29 and saw a “pretty impressive” geyser out front.
“Mostly contained to the basement, which has no major damage that we can tell,” Barton said. “But we're worried about what's happening underneath the sidewalk all in front of the theater, because that's where all the water was flowing.”
He ballparked the damage to the Egyptian around $5,000 and said city property got the worst of it. The area where the Egyptian’s major donors, the Pharaohs, enter is not affected.
City crews were on scene late Aug. 29 and shut off water to upper Main Street to make repairs.
Park City Municipal confirmed the breakage happened in a lateral line, which is connected to the main water line. All businesses except the Egyptian had their water restored Aug. 30.
“We have a show tonight,” Barton said, “and the show will go on—that’s show business.”
So no changes to scheduling. But no water means no fire suppression, and Barton said the theater is taking extra precautions.
“We're going to have to have a fire truck close by and somebody walking the premises during the show to report if there's any fire need,” he said.
There were no injuries, and there is no ongoing threat to the public, according to the city.
The Egyptian’s break was far less severe than a similar line break at Old Town Cellars last spring.
Park City Municipal is in the midst of replacing Main Street’s aging utility infrastructure. Phase one of water line replacement between the post office and Heber Avenue finished under budget on June 27.
Phase two was scheduled to start next spring.
But the Historic Park City Alliance, an organization representing Main Street businesses, found support among its members for a faster timeline.
It has asked the city to resume replacements in September. The next phase would cover the street from the post office up to the top of Main.
The Park City Council is considering the request at its next Thursday meeting.
