EL CAJON UNVEILS PLAN FOR PERFORMING ARTS CENTER: PUBLIC COMMENT TUESDAY AT 1:30 PM

Printer-friendly versionPrinter-friendly version Share this

 

By Miriam Raftery

 

March 29, 2010 (El Cajon) – The City of El Cajon has issued a proposed business plan for the East County Performing Arts Center (ECPAC). The proposed plan calls for the City to take back management of the facility, dramatically remodel the theater, then bring back headliner stars as entertainment.

 

A City Council Advisory Meeting will be held tomorrow at City Council Chambers, 200 Civic Center Way, at 1:30 p.m. Public comment will be heard and a recommendation made to the Council on the future of the performing arts facility. View the proposed plan.

An executive summary reviews options ranging from demolishing the theater to temporary closure to the recommendation action, a $4.3 million renovation and city management of the facility to provide economic, entertainment and cultural benefits to the community. The report concludes that “presentation of the arts is an integral part of any community and should be supported with the same fervor as recreation services, the library, parks, and our urban forest.”

The plan calls for at least 48 performances each year for the first two years of the theater’s operation. A hypothetical list of performers includes varied talents such as Kenny Loggins, Cirque Shanghai, Riders in the Sky, Smothers Brothers, the Oak Ridge Boys, Capitol Steps, Credence Clearwater Revisited, Forever Plaid, Fab Four, Smooth Jazz Christmas, and more.

Apart from ticket sales, the plan predicts that the city would benefit by bringing people into the downtown area to boost restaurant and retail activity, ultimately increasing tax revenues and attracting new businesses to a downtown that has seen an exodus of tenants during the recession.

The proposal also calls for a substantial increase on rental rates from $240 to $300 per hour for theater usage, with no exempt users.

The remodel would include a new roof, creating a second primary entrance to open onto Main Street, adding a second women’s restroom, providing disabled access to dressing rooms, stage and control room, upgrading interior finishes and décor including the lobby and snack bar, improvements to lighting, sound system and electrical, replacing the orchestra lift, and more. Two other major items, expanding a loading dock and adding a full fly space, were rejected due to prohibitive cost and limitations of the physical building space.

Under the plan, renovations would be completed in time for the performing arts center to reopen on September 1, 2011.
 


Error message

Support community news in the public interest! As nonprofit news, we rely on donations from the public to fund our reporting -- not special interests. Please donate to sustain East County Magazine's local reporting and/or wildfire alerts at https://www.eastcountymedia.org/donate to help us keep people safe and informed across our region.