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Pianos survive '08 flood only to be damaged in flooded building

A leaky toilet and kitchen sink pipe caused a flood at a northside rental space Tuesday that extensively damaged six pianos belonging to Hancher Auditorium and the University of Iowa School of Music — including a nine-foot Steinway Model D concert grand piano valued at $120,000.

About 1:23 a.m. Tuesday, an Iowa City police officer reported seeing water flowing out of 209 N. Linn St., a building rented by UI to store items from Hancher and the School of Music, UI spokesman Tom Moore said. The pianos were moved to the rental space to save them from being damaged in the 2008 flood.

University staff was alerted to the situation by 6 a.m., though Moore said, “Even if someone had gotten there five minutes later, the damage at that point (had already been done).”

Of the 10 pianos stored in the building, five of the School of Music’s Steinway pianos and one of Hancher’s — the Steinway Model D — were severely damaged, Moore said. The remaining Hancher pianos, another Steinway Model D and a six-foot baby grand piano, had standing water only an inch or so up their casters and are repairable, he said. Seven of the 10 pianos belonged to the School of Music; three belonged to Hancher.

Moore said the full estimated cost of damage has yet to be determined, but he estimates the university will pay between $10,000 and $15,000 to clean and repair the rented building.

“That’s the only real, solid estimate we have (right now),” Moore said.

Moore said UI officials will have a restoration expert review the damage of the 1979 Steinway Model D that suffered extensive damage to see if can be repaired. If not, UI will spend $120,000 to replace it, he said.

As for the School of Music’s six-foot Steinway pianos, school of music director David Gier said Thursday that those damaged were more than 40 years old and near the end of their life cycle as teaching pianos, so they won’t be repaired.

“We’ve always had a couple pianos that we needed to rotate through, so our long-term plans were to replace these pianos in preparation for getting into the new (school of music) building,” Gier said. “At that time, we will need full inventory in order to outfit the new space, and we have plans to do that.”

The pianos, along with historical and financial records from Hancher that were stored in the facility, were moved to the Linn Street building during the 2008 flood, which destroyed Hancher Auditorium and the School of Music.

Staff said the irony that the materials were moved from one flooded location to, eventually, another, is not lost on them.

“It’s highly ironic that we remove (the pianos) from flooded facilities to protect them, and here they’ve been water damaged,” Moore said.

“It seems like we can’t get away from water, no matter what, but in the grand scheme we’ll get by,” Gier said. “It’s ironic for sure, but it’s a small part of a long story that’s unfolding here, as we move from 2008 into a new building in the future.”

Hancher Executive Director Chuck Swanson said Thursday he is most saddened by the memories that have been washed away in the damage.

“Those were exceptional instruments over the years, and the artists loved them,” he said. “We are definitely pretty saddened by it, although at the same time, they’ve been with us for a long time.”

Moore said all equipment has been removed from the rental space and will be stored in the Studio Arts Building while the Linn Street building is cleaned and repaired. UI’s lease on the building through Stoddard Rentals LLC expires July 31.