Group urges UI leaders to relocate flood-damaged Hancher Auditorium

The Downtown Association of Iowa City has urged University of Iowa leaders to relocate flood-damaged Hancher Auditorium and related music buildings downtown.

The board of directors of the Downtown Association recently voted unanimously in support of the downtown site option, one of two under consideration by UI officials for the relocation of Hancher, Voxman Music Building and Clapp Recital Hall, damaged in the 2008 flood.

Leah Cohen, president of the association, said moving Hancher downtown would promote and sustain the area as a social, cultural and economic hub. It also would encourage more investments and development downtown, she said.

UI officials are weighing the two site options and expect to make a recommendation to state regents in the coming months. The other site under consideration is near the flooded Hancher.