Trends & Ideas
Reinvigorating a Community Cultural Center Project
by Arthur Greenberg
from Insights, our electronic magazine, March 2009 issue
Estes Park, Colorado, 60 miles from Denver and best known as the ''Gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park,'' is home to about 7,000 year-round residents and annually welcomes nearly 3 million visitors. In an effort to provide more entertainment options for the summer tourist influx, the Town invested in an ambitious downtown infrastructure project, including a riverwalk and amphitheater. With a growing arts community producing theater and chamber music concerts at the historic Stanley Hotel, improved or expanded performing arts facilities seemed a logical next step. Questions were posed as to the feasibility of various options: upgrading the Stanley, an adaptive reuse or infill project in downtown, or options on other nearby sites. To evaluate the alternatives and build consensus around a workable solution, the Town engaged AMS to undertake a feasibility study.
AMS, working with Semple Brown Design architects of Denver, followed its long-established comprehensive and inclusive feasibility study process: in-depth interviews with arts and community leadership, comprehensive analysis of the market area and competitive facilities, surveys of prospective user organizations, public planning workshops, and an exploration of comparable venues in other markets. The initial research and planning phases identified strong market interest in a modest, fully-equipped, 500-seat theater, projected to host more than 200 performances annually with a mix of presented, produced, and rental events. There was also found to be significant interest in a 300-seat venue.
As often happens, the appetite for a venue outstripped the funding for it, and cost factors (along with issues over the size of the building) called for scaling back the project. The research process had revealed that the 300-seat venue would also meet a substantial portion of demand and a consensus-building process led to agreement on the smaller theater to be located on the downtown site. AMS' subsequent analysis quantified prospective use of the smaller venue and identified a potential for revenue-generating summer programming.
Despite the Town's commitment and a promised annual subsidy in the range of $200,000, the project became stalled over concerns about the building height and impact on parking and traffic in the downtown district. In 2007, a new community-based group known as Supporters of the Performing Arts (SOPA) emerged and advocated for a site at the county fairgrounds. New, reinvigorated leadership commenced discussions with a local architect to plan a theater with 400 seats. Again, AMS was engaged to analyze the operating and usage projections.
Performing arts users again expressed strong interest in the new venue, projecting some 100 annual uses by local non-profit groups alone. Moreover, new interest was found among several area universities; The University of Colorado in Boulder and the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley both indicated interest in providing summer stock theater, faculty and student ensemble concerts, and music festivals. These additional programs resulted in a projection of over 250 annual uses, with nightly programming during the peak summer tourist season. The community leaders are now in consensus about the project and the Town has re-committed to its operating subsidy. The crucible of the extensive and iterative planning process has generated a stronger and broadly-supported project.
from Insights, our electronic magazine, March 2009 issue
Estes Park, Colorado, 60 miles from Denver and best known as the ''Gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park,'' is home to about 7,000 year-round residents and annually welcomes nearly 3 million visitors. In an effort to provide more entertainment options for the summer tourist influx, the Town invested in an ambitious downtown infrastructure project, including a riverwalk and amphitheater. With a growing arts community producing theater and chamber music concerts at the historic Stanley Hotel, improved or expanded performing arts facilities seemed a logical next step. Questions were posed as to the feasibility of various options: upgrading the Stanley, an adaptive reuse or infill project in downtown, or options on other nearby sites. To evaluate the alternatives and build consensus around a workable solution, the Town engaged AMS to undertake a feasibility study. AMS, working with Semple Brown Design architects of Denver, followed its long-established comprehensive and inclusive feasibility study process: in-depth interviews with arts and community leadership, comprehensive analysis of the market area and competitive facilities, surveys of prospective user organizations, public planning workshops, and an exploration of comparable venues in other markets. The initial research and planning phases identified strong market interest in a modest, fully-equipped, 500-seat theater, projected to host more than 200 performances annually with a mix of presented, produced, and rental events. There was also found to be significant interest in a 300-seat venue.
As often happens, the appetite for a venue outstripped the funding for it, and cost factors (along with issues over the size of the building) called for scaling back the project. The research process had revealed that the 300-seat venue would also meet a substantial portion of demand and a consensus-building process led to agreement on the smaller theater to be located on the downtown site. AMS' subsequent analysis quantified prospective use of the smaller venue and identified a potential for revenue-generating summer programming.
Despite the Town's commitment and a promised annual subsidy in the range of $200,000, the project became stalled over concerns about the building height and impact on parking and traffic in the downtown district. In 2007, a new community-based group known as Supporters of the Performing Arts (SOPA) emerged and advocated for a site at the county fairgrounds. New, reinvigorated leadership commenced discussions with a local architect to plan a theater with 400 seats. Again, AMS was engaged to analyze the operating and usage projections.
Performing arts users again expressed strong interest in the new venue, projecting some 100 annual uses by local non-profit groups alone. Moreover, new interest was found among several area universities; The University of Colorado in Boulder and the University of Northern Colorado in Greeley both indicated interest in providing summer stock theater, faculty and student ensemble concerts, and music festivals. These additional programs resulted in a projection of over 250 annual uses, with nightly programming during the peak summer tourist season. The community leaders are now in consensus about the project and the Town has re-committed to its operating subsidy. The crucible of the extensive and iterative planning process has generated a stronger and broadly-supported project.