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Coastal Engineering Company of Orleans Cape Cod
February 12, 2018

A Fire in the Heart of Provincetown, Remembered

Twenty years ago on Feb. 10, 1998, a major blaze gutted Whaler's Wharf, a 1919-built Provincetown's first cinema converted into a premier shopping destination.

Whalers Wharf Hero Thumb

Coastal Engineering CEO John Bologna, called to the scene to assess the damage, recalls that "Although the red brick and concrete façade was a historic structure and would have been nice to keep, it was unstable after the fire and presented a public safety risk, so it had to be taken down and rebuilt".

In rebuilding, Coastal Engineering recommended to change the design from a wood frame structure to steel frame with concrete floors on metal form deck, a design nod to the Globe Theater in London. A combination of moment and braced frames were utilized to resist lateral forces due to wind loading, resulting in a structure that is noted for its outstanding and unique configuration.

Read a remembrance article in Provincetown Banner.