Chauvet LED fixtures connect Coeur D'Alene's tallest building to community

Coeur D ‘Alene, ID – Barbara Walters described it as “a little slice of heaven.” The National Geographic has declared its namesake lake to be one of the five most beautiful in the world. No wonder the rich and famous from all walks of life have flocked to this idyllic Idaho city. Coeur D ‘Alene’s paradisiacal pleasures are evident throughout the year, but at no time does the city glitter quite so brightly as it does during the Christmas season when it hosts its holiday lightshow, an event so spectacular it’s been featured on Good Morning America.

Official estimates place the number of lights involved in the show at 1.5 million. This year another 14 fixtures were added to the holiday mix, in the form of COLORado 4 IP LED linear washes from Chauvet Professional, provided by AMP'D Entertainment.

Although 14 LED fixtures might not seem like much compared to 1.5 million points of light, the COLORados had an outsized impact on Coeur D ‘Alene’s festivities since they were illuminating the city’s tallest (by number of stories) structure, The Parkside Building. The COLORados were permanently positioned around the building earlier in 2015 to decorate it in richly colored light, not only during the holidays, but throughout the year.

Towering over the city’s downtown, The Parkside Building includes three floors of upscale retail establishments and 17 floors of luxurious condominiums. Aside from offering well-heeled residents unparalleled views of the lake, the orange-tinted tower has also become a local landmark since it was completed in 2008. The most prominent building in town, it can be seen from virtually anywhere in Coeur D ‘Alene. For many the tower, which was originally planned as a nine story structure but was more than doubled in size to meet the demand for condos, serves as a directional reference point (as in “it’s three blocks north of Parkside”) as well as a source of community pride.

In recognition of their building’s stature both literally and figuratively in Coeur D ‘Alene, its management and condo-owners felt it was only proper to celebrate the structure by illuminating its exterior in colored light. “I believe the goal in installing the lights was to create some excitement around the building and connect it more closely to ceremonies the town of Coeur D' Alene has during the holidays as well as at other times,” said Justin Haas, founder and general manager of AMP'D Entertainment.

The building’s management team contacted Haas after seeing the work AMP'D Entertainment did using Chauvet Professional LED fixtures to colorize two 225-foot towers at Steam Plant Square an iconic multi-use center in nearby Spokane, Washington. In addition to looking at the COLORado fixtures offered by AMP'D Entertainment, the building’s management brought in other fixtures for a shootout.

“They found that no other light they looked at came close to the output and the saturation of the Colorado 4 IP's, so they confirmed our proposal and actually hired their own electrician to install the fixtures with our guidance,” said Haas.

The COLORado 4 IPs encircle the 65 meter high rectangular concrete structure to bathe it on all sides in rich and realistic RGBW colors. The colors used to wash the building will vary depending on the time of year, local events or holidays. Often multiple colors will appear on the building, such as red, white and blue for the Fourth of July.

Positioned above the building’s second story retail level, the 40-watt LED fixtures, which have 15-degree lenses, possess enough throw distance to reach the top of the tower with ease. Extending out 1.5 feet from the building, the IP66 rated COLORados are mounted on customized bracket structures that conceal the cabling, which connects to power sources in the second floor.

“The project went off very smoothly and everyone seems very happy,” said Haas. “The Parkside Building is a prominent structure in town. There’s a good feeling that comes from knowing our lights have helped it connect to the community in new ways during the holidays and at other times of year.”

For more information on AMP'D Entertainment visit: www.ampdaudiovisual.com

About Chauvet Professional
Chauvet Professional offers innovative professional lighting fixtures for the production and touring market as well as permanent installation in theatres, hospitality venues, cruise ships, clubs, television and architainment applications.

About Chauvet Europe
Chauvet Europe is the full service European branch of Chauvet, based in the UK. Chauvet is a leading manufacturer of professional luminaires, truss and related equipment headquartered in the USA. Chauvet products are supplied globally under four main brands: Chauvet® DJ, Chauvet® Professional, ILUMINARC® and TRUSST®. They share Chauvet’s unified strategy to pursue every market segment where it has a competitive advantage in terms of value, innovation and performance, with an emphasis on LED technology. For more information, please visit www.chauvetlighting.co.uk.

Contact:

Patrick McCumiskey - Chauvet Professional