Real Estate & Construction  October 9, 2009

Lincoln Center goes dark in 2010 during renovations

FORT COLLINS – The performing arts in Fort Collins have received a dramatic boost this fall. In September, the Downtown Development Authority announced a $2 million investment in physical space, and City council approved the $1.8 million purchase of a warehouse for nonprofit arts groups to rehearse, build sets and store props. The DDA will also underwrite $144,063 in rental and technical fees for groups that perform at the city-owned Lincoln Center through the 2013 season.

Yet in the midst of this revitalization, Lincoln Center will go dark for the 2010-11 season.

The 1,180-seat Performance Hall and 220-seat Mini Theatre will both close on June 1, as the city undertakes a comprehensive renovation of the facility that could last as long as six months.

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“It’s both an exciting and a scary time,” according to Cultural Services and Facilities Director Jill Stilwell.

Exciting because the 31-year-old building, Fort Collins’ major performance venue, is in desperate need of a facelift. The $6.5 million renovation will provide new lighting, carpeting, upgraded acoustics, storage areas, a family bathroom, bathrooms on the balcony level and elevator to access them. The design by Aller, Lingle, Massey Architects in Fort Collins moves the box office to create a spacious lobby that should attract patrons before and after performances.

The majority of funding – $5 million – was included in the quarter-cent sales and use tax dedicated to capital projects, Building on Basics, renewed by city voters in 2005. Lincoln Center still needs to raise the remaining funds from private donors.

Scary because the Lincoln Center is home to a number of local performing arts groups including the Fort Collins Symphony, OpenStage Theatre & Co. and Canyon Concert Ballet, among others. Where will these groups perform during the 2010-11 season, which typically runs from September through May?

In addition to letting the groups know there will not be a Lincoln Center season in ’10-11, staff have sought to reassure them there will be support during the closure.

“We’ve been talking to the groups, working with them about how they’re going to handle it,´ said Susan Herlihy, Lincoln Center public relations coordinator.

Resources and support

One element is a lengthy resource list that includes alternative performance spaces. Herlihy said the list of venues – “as comprehensive as we can make it” – ranges from the 7,200-seat Budweiser Events Center in Loveland to local high school auditoriums and facilities on the Colorado State University Campus.

“There are other resources we’ll also be offering, and that’s a really key part,” she added. “Beyond alternative venue spaces, the Lincoln Center will provide box office, technical assistance, and marketing support. The redesigned website is an integral part of that support. For the first time on the website we’re promoting other presenters’ shows side by side with Lincoln Center shows. That website will still be active during renovation, so there will be another way of presenting and marketing their shows.”

The tech support includes both equipment and the professionals to run it.

“We’ll have a team of tech crews that can go to different venues and help run their show,” Stilwell said. “We’ll have some equipment that will be available for rental and that can be used in different locations, so we can help them maintain the quality of the shows that they are producing.”

Lincoln Center’s art galleries and two conference rooms, popular rental spaces for community meetings, wedding receptions and awards banquets, will also be closed for remodeling, sending event planners in search of alternatives as well.

Outside the venue box

One such alternative could be the historic Bas Bleu Theatre building on Pine Street. Under the terms of a 10-year, $220,000 lease agreement with the DDA, signed in July, the lobby and performance space can be used by the public free of charge on a first-come, first-served basis. There are 109 partial-use and 21 full-use free days, as well as rentals at regular rates, available. Additional services, such as tech staff and box office services, can be purchased separately.

However, because the dates are dependent upon the Bas Bleu season, which runs from August through July, events cannot be booked beyond July 31 at this point.

For Denise Freestone, artistic director of OpenStage, the remodeling poses “an intriguing opportunity. We have two seasons, OpenStage in the Lincoln Center Mini-Theatre and OpenStage etc. which uses various downtown locations and minimal technical elements to stage cutting-edge pieces,” she said. “This gives us an opportunity to engage our audience and think outside the venue box.”

While the performers are being looked after, a question remains about the audience, especially season ticket-holders for the national touring shows presented on the center’s main stage.

“We’re taking all of this in stages,” Herlihy said. “The three most important things are the renovation, making sure that it’s done on time, on budget, effectively. Two, that we really focus on the relaunch in 2011. We want the programming to be stellar. Three, the season should be so spectacular that we bring season ticket-holders back into the fold, and attract new people in the process.”

FORT COLLINS – The performing arts in Fort Collins have received a dramatic boost this fall. In September, the Downtown Development Authority announced a $2 million investment in physical space, and City council approved the $1.8 million purchase of a warehouse for nonprofit arts groups to rehearse, build sets and store props. The DDA will also underwrite $144,063 in rental and technical fees for groups that perform at the city-owned Lincoln Center through the 2013 season.

Yet in the midst of this revitalization, Lincoln Center will go dark for the 2010-11 season.

The 1,180-seat Performance Hall and 220-seat Mini Theatre will both…

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