Firehouse Arts Center gets tentative OK Firehouse Arts Center gets tentative OK (September 09, 2005)

Funding fails to keep costs down
by Jeb Bing

The Pleasanton City Council gave its tentative approval Tuesday to an $8.4 million studio theater and arts center on Railroad Avenue downtown.

The project, long advanced by the privately-organized Cultural Arts Council, will involve major renovations and new construction at the former Railroad Avenue Fire Station, which once housed the headquarters of the Pleasanton Fire Department, which is now part of the Livermore-Pleasanton Fire Department with headquarters on Nevada Street and Bernal Avenue.

Pleasanton Fire Station No. 4, which shared the Railroad Avenue station, moved into its own new firehouse on Bernal Avenue near Valley last month.

At a workshop meeting the council held with its Civic Arts Commission, officials all voiced support for the proposed Firehouse Arts Center. However, with the project $2.5 million short in funding, there was concern that without a jump-start from the city, it could take several years to build the facility.

The council has already pledged $6 million in general fund revenue toward the center, with the Cultural Arts Council asked to raise the rest. That group is planning a major fundraiser next month, but without a major corporate sponsor or two, it could take several fundraisers over a period of time before enough money could be raised.

Kurt Schindler and Ed Noland of the consulting firm of ELS Architecture and Urban Design said their current estimates of $8,444,000 for the project were based on building and design costs as of last January. With steel and cement costs rising, the project could top $9 million and possible reach $10 million.

As planned, the new theater and arts center would include a 250-seat theater with flexible seating, to be used for youth theater productions, chamber music, small dramatic productions, musical concerts and literary events.

The art gallery would be designed to display all forms of fine art, including installations and video arts. The gallery would support local arts organizations which now lack sufficient space in Pleasanton to display their work.

Also included in the proposed facility would be at least two classrooms to be used for week-long arts workshops, fine arts and crafts classes, rehearsals, meetings and lectures.

In reviewing their cost estimates, the consultants said parts of the building could be scaled back or taken out of the plans. Even then, they explained, the total costs would still be far above the $6 million already pledged by the city government.

Others also suggested phasing the construction project, possibly building only a shell at first, with Cultural Arts Council fundraising and corporate grants to pay for finishing the building. Schindler said that could add to the total costs once the building was finished, while delaying its use for several years.

Rudy Johnson, a member of the Cultural Arts Council Foundation, an arm of the Council that will handle the fundraising, objected to a phased building plan or cutting back on the size and uses of the building.

"Pleasanton is a first class community and we want this to be a first class facility," Johnson said. "If anyone thinks the estimated cost is excessive, I can tell you that it's not. Ashland, Oregon just built a smaller theater, and it cost over $13 million. Properly equipped theaters and art galleries are not cheap if we want to do this one right."

Councilman Matt Sullivan said that he also supports building the facility as a complete project, "not phasing it in over a long period of time."

"I can see the city subsidizing the additional funds that are needed with the organizations to pay us back later through fundraising," he said. "I want to see this move forward."

Councilman Steve Brozosky said he would have no problem in allocating additional funds to build the firehouse center now, but warned that it might be hard to find contributors after that once they see the project has been paid for.

With detailed cost estimates and architectural plans in place and accepted by the council, City manager Nelson Fialho, his staff, consultants and the Cultural Arts Council will now prepare a detailed financing and construction timeline for consideration by the council in November.

(ART) @photocredit:ELS Design

Artist's sketch shows Railroad Avenue exterior of proposed Firehouse Arts Center.
@photocredit:ELS Design

Artist's sketch shows Railroad Avenue interior of proposed Firehouse Arts Center.

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