Civic Auditorium Past and Future

By Ann K. Williams
Staff Writer

September 19 -- On the surface, last week’s community forum could have been interchangeable with countless recent local community brainstorming sessions under the guidance of paid consultants.

But the subject -- the landmark Santa Monica Civic Auditorium -- was charged with intense feeling and strongly held opinions.

Due to be renovated and possibly expanded as its surroundings continue to be transformed under the Civic Center Specific Plan adopted last year, the popular venue represents both a cultural center and a revenue stream to the City.

But it represents far more to many who showed up at the meeting Wednesday in the new Main Library to discuss the fate of the historic auditorium.

“People have a lot of emotion about this building, a lot of memories,” said David Plettner of the Cultural + Planning Group of Los Angeles, the consultant who led the gathering of more than 20 representatives of local arts and civic groups.

The Civic Auditorium has been a Santa Monica landmark for half a century. (Photos courtesy of Civic Auditorium).

The history of the auditorium was never far from the discussion, as long-time Santa Monicans recalled appearances by Bob Dylan, the Rolling Stones, Frank Sinatra, Duke Ellington and the Dalai Lama and seven years of Academy Awards ceremonies. And the more recent Cat Show was mentioned fondly several times.

Carole A. Curtin, the Civic Auditorium Manager whose tenure goes back to “the Rock and Roll days,” shared some of her memories with The Lookout.

“I have heard stories from people who lined up to buy tickets for the rock concerts when Springsteen ticket’s were $6.50, people who finished surfing and walked over to attend one of the historic surf films, people who came to the civic when they were dating and are still attending events after 35 years of marriage,” Curtin said.

“My wish for the future is that new generations of Santa Monica residents will applaud today’s residents and community leaders for creating a new vision for the auditorium that will provide a creative home in the heart of the City.”

Though the Civic has been the subject of at least five studies over the years, this one promises to lead to action, according to the City’s consultants.

“Change will occur, if for no other reason than the parking’s going to disappear,” Plettner told the group.

The 1,000-space parking lot that generates half the Civic Auditorium’s income will be replaced by a soccer field and a childcare center, according to current plans. The east wing of the auditorium may be extended by 20,000 square feet.

The “conundrum,” as consultant Jerry Allen called it, is that most of the people surveyed want both a major concert venue and smaller, intimate theaters and galleries, while the city wants its revenue to keep coming in at the same time as it sponsors a “cutting edge” cultural center.

The competing visions “don’t mesh perfectly,” said Allen.

The consensus at the meeting came down squarely in favor of the Civic Auditorium’s cultural mission, though its continued use as a center for trade shows and conferences was acknowledged by most as necessary, if only to fund cultural activities.

“Maybe we should stretch the boundaries of how you’d define” the uses of the auditorium, suggested one of the participants, Tom Grode. “When people hear concert venue, conference center, you think of something.

“I’d like to see an article in Newsweek” about how Santa Monica “pioneered a complete new understanding of what a civic center should be,” Grode added.

A film convention at the Civic.

His comments seemed to spur the group’s creativity. Revenue-producing conferences could focus on creative pursuits, suggested Elsa Longhauser of the Santa Monica Museum of Art, creating “a paradigm for cities all over the world.”

Former Mayor and Santa Monica Symphony booster Nat Trives compared the process to rebuilding a classic car.

“I’m going to rebuild it, because I like the exterior, I like the garden,” he said.

“It just takes imagination and coordination and we could do miracles here,” added his Symphony colleague Dr. D’Lynn Waldron.

Hot young bands, green space that’s usable, outdoor concerts, after school arts workshops, state-of-the-art sound and video systems, temporary art galleries – these were just a few of the ideas that were suggested.

A number of the participants emphasized the need to maintain the Civic’s capacity for large events, using the hydraulic floor – a bold innovation when the auditorium was built in 1958 – to transform the interior exhibit space into a concert hall.

And by the end of the meeting, the shared vision seemed to be inclusive, calling for a flexible environment, indoor and out, busy night and day, a home to visual and performing arts, as well as lectures, conferences, and, yes, the Cat Show.