Monday After Conference Weekend

Another lovely morning graced the site today.  The white crane is gone for good, though.

The crane stood on the huge white box on the left.  I think we can all agree that he spent a very productive year at the site.  The box is filled with concrete.  Somehow it will go away.

It is quite thrilling to see Moroni.

We are all pretty much in agreement about that.

I've been learning about Moroni and the lightning rod.   Not unrelated, have you seen the two videos of Moroni's arrival?  At first glance it appears that Moroni was trailing a coiled rope.

This photo from a blog reader shows the rope, which is actually a copper cable.  It ultimately connects to copper rods buried in the earth, which of course is why it's called a ground wire.  In 2009, the new Moroni on top of the Oquirrh Mountain temple was struck by lightening, so the need for the ground wire is not just an obscure safety code.  That Moroni was replaced pretty quickly.

My camera spied a new opening in the white sheeting on the front of the tabernacle.  When I got home, I could see that the new cove edge of the north gable is being created.

Cove edges are also being built on the west gable.

Only the gables and towers have the cove edge, not the other parts of the roof.

This photo of the original tabernacle shows the straight roof edges along with the cove roofs on the five towers and the gables.  The design of the new temple will replicate the tabernacle as much as possible.

There was a lot going on this morning, which made the site very noisy.  I took a picture of this new delivery area.  The sidewalk along University Avenue runs north through the center of this picture.  The green construction fence abuts the curb.  However, this space is large enough that a delivery truck can back along the sidewalk.

A helpful blog reader took this picture last week so you would believe me.

The steeple has become a new area of focus for us temple watchers.

Another blog reader asked me about the snow guards.

These are designed to break up snow so it doesn't slide off the steeple in a large or dangerous chunk.

Another blog reader reminded me that there will be art glass in the steeple windows.

I took a picture of the artist's rending on the construction fence. This banner has been through a long and muddy winter, but it is still useful enough to confirm that our friend is correct.

I took another picture of the fountain on the banner.  Two weeks ago  I wondered about two different fountains on two different banners.  The designer of this 3-D model indicates that the old-fashioned fountain will be built.

Building the forms and laying the tension cables at the south entrance is a massive job.

I am curious about this open area on the east side.  I will keep an eye on it if nothing gets in the way.

The forms for the roof of the underground parking garage keep spreading south.  Notice the black forms in the lower center.

A rebar lattice is being constructed several feet away from the wooden retaining wall.

Assuming you would be interested, I took several pictures.  Remember that my camera flattens things out, so the dirt on the right is north of this rebar lattice.

It looks like this wall will bend east and end up next to the retaining wall.

Right now the wall appears to be equal in position with the edge of the anterior room of the pavilion.  I don't know if that means anything or not.

Green rebar is barely staying ahead of the forms.  You can also see the new slab of concrete which was poured last week on the west side.

The black crane is working hard to keep his job.  He's the one lugging this bundle of supports.

The red block belongs to the black crane.  He's moving rebar in this photo.

Cable trenches on the left are ready to be placed in the form work at the entrance.

Concrete pillars are springing out of the ground like soldiers from dragon's teeth.

Supports and more cable trenches are waiting in the south lot to be put to use.

Walls of the mechanical building are rising out of the west lot.

I have wondered if cinder blocks are being used because the concrete pump can't reach this far.

These are the two new cranes at the site.

They may not be majestic, but they will get the job done.

I took a detour this morning and went by the current Provo Temple, catching Moroni as the sun rose over the mountains.  I am beyond thrilled that we have two angels in Provo.

The birds are different on the Provo Temple grounds, not to mention there is grass.

But spring is coming to both temples.

Moroni In The Sun

I wanted to see Moroni in the sunlight today.  I had to go between snowstorms.

Traffic was slow during the evening rush hour, giving me the opportunity to watch him for several blocks.

I wondered if I'd see Mr. Crane being dismantled.  Not yet.

But the guy who's going to do it has arrived.

How many pictures do you want to see of Moroni?

I took quite a few.  With the scaffolding down, the steeple is very interesting.

There seem to be a lot of windows involved in its base.

The copper ridges on the steeple reflect the sunlight, too.

It was hard not to notice a spike coming out of Moroni's head.

Andrew Gibson sent me a picture from Monday afternoon showing the workmen putting sealant around the lightning rod after Moroni was placed.

There were many good places from where I could see Moroni this afternoon.

Cables are now being placed over the labyrinth area at the south entrance.

The rebar was there Monday, but I was pretty sure no one would be interested in rebar then.

Stairs come up out of this area, but I'm not sure how they will work the forms around them.  Notice the one-sided forms for the west wall going up.

Two red ladders assisted in the construction of the sixth column for the south entrance near the anterior room of the underground portion of the pavilion.

I walked to Second South to take a few pictures.  I could barely get through there on Monday because there were so many people at the site to see Moroni.  Today, I was alone.

A front end loader and Mr. Dashing Track Hoe were preparing the south lot for more drains and concrete.

I believe these forms came from underneath the west lot now that the concrete there has cured.

I couldn't see any evidence that work on the brick has started on the west side, but the roof over the northwest tower is being covered with a water and ice barrier.

Forms are growing over the mechanical building on the north edge of the west lot.  Some of these were also in place on Monday, but again, I didn't think anyone cared that day.

I've been watching for blossoms for several weeks.  These showed up today despite the snow!