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Chandler Center for the Arts getting face-lift
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REFURBISHING PLANS: General manager Katrina Mueller looks over the Chandler Center for the Arts, which will get money to refurbish the seats, which have been in use for 20 years.
Julio Jimenez, Tribune
REPAIRS SLATED: The Chandler Center for the Arts will receive $7 million for renovations in 2009 to repair wear and tear over the last 20 years.
Julio Jimenez, Tribune
The Chandler Center for the Arts, which has played host to stars like Bill Cosby, Jay Leno and Dionne Warwick over the last 20 years, is about to get a nearly $7 million face-lift.
The 64,000-square-foot facility, built in 1989 at 250 N. Arizona Ave. just north of Chandler Boulevard, seats more than 1,500 people. Katrina Mueller, the center's general manager, said the facility has suffered from wear and tear over the years.
"The impetus was really the age of the building," Mueller said. "We are finding that some systems have issues that need to be addressed."
Next month, on Jan. 21 and 22, city officials plan to hold public meetings to discuss the renovation designs and to present artist renderings. The city hired consultants Westlake, Reed and Leskosky and Brignall Construction, this year to draft the designs and conduct pre-construction services at a cost of nearly $730,000, Mueller said.
The money will come from $6.7 million in bond funding approved by the city and the Chandler Unified School District in 2006 and 2007.
The Center for the Arts is owned jointly by city and the school district, and is programmed by the Chandler Cultural Foundation, a nonprofit corporation.
The remainder of the bond money will go toward construction, which is expected to start in May and last about a year, Mueller said.
The city and the cultural foundation commissioned a study in 2007 to review the conditions of the Chandler Center for the Arts. The study resulted in recommendations on how to improve the center's operations and accessibility, and to bring it up to city code.
Priority was given to replacing the center's system of rigging, on which hangs the lights and scenery.
"That's a key element of the theater. That allows you to produce a show," Mueller said.
Other priorities include upgrading the air conditioning system and fire alarms, making the center more accessible for the disabled and refurbishing the seats, she said.
"The seating is all the original seats in the building. It's going on 20 years old. There has been some wear and tear," Mueller said. "There's probably about 20 different projects within that renovation package."
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