Estimated read time: 4-5 minutes
- The new Marshall White Center in Ogden is under construction, costing $34 million.
- Artist Damon Lamar Reed will create artwork honoring Marshall White, an Ogden police officer killed in 1963.
- The center aims to serve Ogden's diverse community, reopening next summer with modern amenities.
OGDEN — As the new Marshall White Center building takes shape in Ogden, one of the artists picked by city officials to accentuate the building says he's aiming to pay homage of sorts to the building's namesake.
The $34 million rebuild of the structure — a recreation, sports and community center that's served a modest neighborhood near Ogden's core — started last year. It's quickly advancing, and Chicago-based artist Damon Lamar Reed has been doing his homework on Marshall White, the Ogden police officer shot and killed in the line of duty in 1963 and memorialized with his name on the facility.
"To me, he's almost like the Martin Luther King of Ogden," said Reed, reached by phone. Reed is one of two artists selected to do the artwork for the building. LaToya Peoples, who wasn't immediately available for comment on her plans, will handle artwork that's to go inside the structure.
The Marshall White Center, first completed in 1968, has served a diverse population and is emblematic of city leaders' outreach to some of Ogden's historically marginalized community members. The closure of the pool at the original facility in 2018 because of cracking sparked intense debate over its future, and a coalition of boosters ultimately succeeded in prodding city leaders to completely rebuild the aging complex. Demolition of the old building and construction of the new one started in mid-2023.
Indeed, to many, the structure is more than brick and mortar, and the city's request for proposals from artists to handle the public art elements of the new building harkens to its roots and White's role in Ogden's history. The new structure, located at 222 28th St., is to reopen next summer, according to the city.
"A Black man who died in the heat of the U.S. civil rights movement, White became an important symbol for the Ogden community," the city's request for proposals reads. The building dedicated in his honor sits "in the heart of a historically Black and Latino community."
Likewise, while having a new, modern recreation center is significant in itself, Betty Sawyer also stressed the importance of highlighting White as its namesake. Sawyer heads the Ogden branch of the NAACP — which White led when he was killed — and organizes many community events out of the facility.
"If we don't tell the story, future generations won't know," Sawyer said.
Reed, who will travel to Ogden in April to install the artwork, didn't provide details of his plans except to say he plans a "bricolage mosaic" combining tile, mirror, painted elements and three-dimensional relief elements. He aims to highlight White's life and visited Ogden over the summer, talking with youth from the neighborhood and others. He also spoke to White's son and granddaughter as part of his research.
"He did some really good things, trying to just unite the people," Reed said. Reed's aim with his artwork, he said, is to create beauty and inspire, and the Ogden project "fit perfect with my mission."
While Peoples, who's based in Baltimore, Maryland, couldn't be immediately reached for comment, her website says she aims to "create transformative public artwork guided by community engagement and exploration of identity and history."
According to Weber State University archives, White, born in Tennessee, studied podiatry, served in the military, worked in health care and ultimately joined the Ogden Police Department.
"At first, working for OPD, he was not allowed to arrest white people or drive a patrol car. He could only ride in a car if another officer rode with him, and most of the officers refused to do so. Eventually, other officers and officials came to respect him," reads the Weber State historical account.
Perhaps having faced discrimination, he advocated for the Black community. "White was also president of the Ogden NAACP. He often spoke to members of the community about discrimination in Ogden and advocated for just treatment of Blacks in employment and housing," reads the Weber State document.
The new Marshall White Center will be much larger than the original and house a swimming pool, running track and new gym, among other amenities. It will also house a teaching kitchen and contain space for community events.
