Echoes of Place: A Spatial Memory Sound Walk of the MIX Center

6 ECHOES

Echoes of Place is an experimental sound walk that listens to the histories circulating around the ASU MIX Center and treats the surrounding blocks as a spatial archive of memory. As visitors move, they activate sonic traces of the many worlds that have shaped this area: the flowing irrigation networks of the Akimel O’odham (Pima) and Pee Posh (Maricopa) peoples; the agricultural presence and church-centered community built by the The early Mormon settlers of Mesa; the massive WWII hangar relocated here after the war to host the Maricopa County Fair; and the midcentury hum of El Portal hotel alive with a lively bar, over 55 rooms that hosted Spring Training guests including players from the Chicago Cubs. The MIX Center becomes the newest layer in this evolving constellation, adding the contemporary frequencies of film, game, and media creation. Through sound, Echoes of Place lets listeners drift through overlapping eras, experiencing downtown Mesa as a living field of memory where past and present resonate together in space.

Thank you to Dr. Kristy H.A. Kang, Sven Ortel, Dr. Jamie Kirtz, Shaney Blackburn-Aguirre, Victor Linoff, David Crummey, and the Mesa Room @ Mesa Library.

Mesa Civic Center

In 1947, the City of Mesa purchased a 27,000-square-foot World War II hangar from Marana, dismantled it, and moved it piece by piece to this very block. Reassembled here, the massive structure became a centerpiece of what was then called the Civic Center or the Municipal Coliseum—a versatile public space that hosted community gatherings, exhibitions, and major events. For more than a decade, this block was home to the Maricopa County Fair, filling the hangar and surrounding grounds with livestock shows, entertainment, and the energy of a growing postwar community. The building stood as a symbol of Mesa’s resourcefulness and civic pride until 1959, when a fire destroyed the hangar and brought an end to its remarkable chapter in the city’s history.

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George W. Sirrine

The Sireene family, led by George W. Sirrine, was among the original settlers who helped establish Mesa’s early Mormon community. George W. played a meaningful role in shaping the young settlement—working the land, building community networks, and contributing to the foundations of early Mesa life.

The road you are looking at once carried his name, a recognition of his presence and ownership of the land beneath your feet. For Mesa’s 100-year centennial, the street was renamed Centennial to honor the city’s broader history, but the ground itself still carries the memory of the Sirrine homestead.

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Akimel O’odham (Pima) and Pee Posh (Maricopa) Land

Long before Mesa became a city, this land belonged to the Akimel O’odham (Pima) and Pee Posh (Maricopa) peoples—communities whose lives were intertwined with the desert’s rhythms. Through a vast network of hand-dug irrigation canals, they transformed the arid landscape into thriving fields, sustaining life where water met ingenuity.

Where today a pecan and pine tree stand, there was once a living tapestry of desert beauty: flowing canal water, cultivated fields, and the deep cultural memory of those who shaped the valley long before modern development.

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The MIX is Built

The ASU MIX Center was planned and constructed in downtown Mesa as part of the city’s vision for a new creative district. After years of design work, community input, and phased construction, it opened in 2022 as the home of the Sidney Poitier New American Film School and GAME School. The project transformed an empty lot into a state-of-the-art facility with sound stages, production studios, editing suites, and digital media labs—spaces created to support and inspire the imagination of young creative minds. With its opening, the MIX Center infused new artistic and technological energy into Mesa’s historic downtown, becoming a place where students could explore, innovate, and shape the future of storytelling and interactive media.

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Old City Library

Standing at the corner of First Street and Sirrine, this building once housed the community’s original public library, a cornerstone of early civic life. Built during an era when towns were rapidly expanding their public services, the library served not only as a place for books, but as a genuine neighborhood gathering space.

The structure typically featured solid masonry construction, often in a Classical Revival or early 20th-century civic style, with tall windows that allowed natural light to flood the reading rooms. Visitors would have seen a modest front entryway, sometimes framed by simple columns or stonework, leading into a quiet interior lined with wooden shelves and reading tables.

For many years, this library was one of the few places where residents could access newspapers, reference materials, and community programs. Its location—just off Sirrine, close to the heart of downtown—made it easy for students, shopkeepers, and families to stop in on their daily routines.

Although the library eventually moved to a larger modern facility, the original building remains a reminder of the community’s early commitment to education, literacy, and public life. Standing here, you can imagine the steady stream of people who once passed through its doors in search of knowledge, connection, and a cool place to read on a warm afternoon.

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