Performing Arts Center proposed for downtown Greensboro

[urbanscraper]

A preferred location for the proposed downtown Greensboro Performing Arts Center has been announced and the design has been revealed. This is the design plan for a $41 million, 3,200-seat theater on a block bound by North Elm and Lindsay streets. It would be the largest performing arts center in the Carolinas. Other downtown locations are still being considered but It appears the North Elm site a block north of Center-City Park is the preferred location and for good reason. The city's largest parking deck, which is 8-stories, is located on the opposite corner of the site. The site is also surrounded by some of the office towers. The design is impressive and its a nice to see a contemporary design. Much of whats been built in downtown Greensboro over the last several years have been early 20th century retro designs. The downtown PAC would replace the aging War Memorial Auditorium at the Greensboro Coliseum locate a few miles west of the proposed downtown site.

This facility would have 700 more seats than the Kimmel Center for Performing Arts in Philadelphia. It would have 1,100 more seats than the Blumenthal Performing Arts Center in uptown Charlotte. GPAC would have a curtain system that can transform the space into a 1,500-seat theater for smaller events. Even though this would be downtown, I'm glad coliseum director Matt Brown and his staff will be running this venue. He has a track record of luring big events to the Greensboro Coliseum. The performing arts center will host major Broadway productions, famous music artists/concerts, traveling shows such as cirque du soleil and Spiderman, Greensboro orchestra, and more

http://www.news-record.com/content/2...signs_unveiled

courtesy of the city of Greensboro






see floor plans and more renderings here

http://www.greensboro-nc.gov/modules...cumentid=15278

Comparison with the Durham Performing Arts Center which opened several years ago.

Total seat count (Greensboro) 3,205
Total seat count (Durham) 2,741


seats in orchestra pit (Greensboro) 42
seats in orchestra pit (Durham) 29


orchestra level seats (Greensboro) 2,642
orchestra level seats (Durham) 1,391

first balcony (Greensboro) 521
first balcony (Durham) 519


lobby area (Greensboro) 24,650 Sq Ft
lobby area (Durham) 17,125 Sq Ft

total stage width (Greensboro) 120 Ft
total stage width (Durham) 114 Ft

[Atlguy33]

Looks great! Thanks for posting!

[thunder89]

That looks so great...I've gotta get over there and visit sometime

[urbanscraper]

LOL its great but there are a few little hurdles. First the financing has to be completely worked out. So far $13 million in donations has been pledged and a ticket tax is being considered. City Council will be voting for $20 million to put on a city-wide bond referendum. Council will not pursue a bond that won't require voter approval which was the way Durham built theirs. If for some reason the city votes no to the bond, I'm confident there is enough momentum for private dollars and other ways the city can build this. But I agree, its an awesome design and it would be something Greensboro can be proud of.

[urbanscraper]

There have been design and location changes. Here is the latest design for the Greensboro Performing Arts Center. The facility will seat 3,000 which is more seats than the PAC in Atlanta. It will still be in downtown Greensboro and will be built in the heart of the cultural district. In addition a privately funded city park/plaza/indoor pavilion will be built as a part of the performing arts center.

The rendering of GPAC has been released and I must say I am pleased with the design. Its better than all the other designs and its certainly better than any performing arts center in the state. The interior design exceeds other performing arts center in North Carolina as well. Another interesting thing is that this PAC will have features not found in the Durham Performing Arts Center like the flexible stage. It's designed so that seating on the bottom level can be removed for standing concerts. The architects also came up with an innovative way to project live video images on screens inside. The planned privately funded park/plaza/indoor pavilion adjacent to the performing arts center will be the icing on the cake. The earliest the PAC would open is in 2016.

[urbanscraper]

The task force will give the final report to city council tonight about the project and how it should be funded. The venue would have 3,000 seats, more than any PAC in the Carolinas. The new PAC is needed because War Memorial Auditorium at the coliseum (built in the 1950s) is very outdated and Greensboro has been losing events to Durham Performing Arts Center and the Blumenthal Center for the Performing Arts in Charlotte. Plus Greensboro wants to move its performing arts space from the coliseum to downtown.

Looks like they are going to try to build this without costing the taxpayers. The total cost of the performing arts center will be $60 million. The financing will be a combination of:

$20 private donations
$20 million in user fees/ticket tax/hotel-motel tax
$20 million in grants and fundraising (naming rights could help pay for it too)

In addition, a privately funded urban park plaza with an indoor pavilion will be built next to the performing arts center. The park will serve as a plaza for the performing arts center and could have large outdoor screens that show some performances inside the performing arts center. Part of Summit Ave will have to be relocated for the park. The park will be called the Carolyn and Maurice LeBauer City Park. Center-City Park is also across the street from the PAC site so there may be an opportunity to connect the two parks. The PAC architects also recommended painting the street in a brick/stone pattern to look like a plaza. That way The two parks and the PAC will look like one big complex like in the photo below (West Lake Square in Seattle). The streets would be closed off during major PAC events.

courtesy of pjf.net


http://myfox8.com/2013/02/05/gpac-ta...-final-report/

park to complement PAC
http://www.bizjournals.com/triad/new...reensboro.html


Unlike the other PACs in North Carolina, this one will have flexible seating. Seating can be removed on the main floor for stand up concerts. It will also have a wider stage than DPAC or the Blumenthal Performing Arts Center in Charlotte. This means more stage area for Broadway productions.

Greensboro Performing Arts Center (GPAC)

renderings courtesy of GPAC task force



very tall performing arts center. Looks like its 7 or 8 stories tall.



Another unique feature are projections.
Large scale projections are ideal for the balcony and brings the performance closer to the seats. The audience can look straight out to see large images instead of always looking down at the stage.













Streets painted in brick pattern

[initiald]

Hey that's pretty nice looking. I know DPAC has been a big draw for Durham I hope this can do the same for downtown Greensboro.

[wkiehl101]

That will be a nice addition to downtown...hope they plan to beef up the parking...

[urbanscraper]

plans for the performing arts center are moving full steam ahead. There have been some changes. The PAC is being relocated to a new and larger site for parking and onsite development. This means the facility will have to be redesigned. The PAC will cost $60 million and have 3,000 seats. Funding is almost in place. Organizers have said there are exceeding their $20 million goal in private donation. The city of Greensboro approved $20 million in ticket and other users fees. $10 million will come from premium parking at the PAC and the last $10 million will come from Greensboro's share of the county hotel/motel tax. The county board is set to vote on allotting the money Thursday and will likely pass because two republicans on the 9 seat board are siding with the 4 democrats This means the PAC will be built without money coming from the city's general fund or without a bond/tax hike. In addition to the PAC, a park/plaza built next to it and will be donated to the city. It could include an indoor venue for events and part of Summit Ave may have to be closed or relocated for the plaza. The park would have large outdoor screens so that people can watch some events going on in the PAC outside in the park. Part of the land the PAC will sit on will be set aside for development. This could include restaurants and maybe even a hotel attached to the performing arts center.

[urbanscraper]

Steven Tanger of Greensboro based Tanger Outlets donates 7.5 million toward the performing arts center. Instead of being called GPAC, the name of the facility will be called "Steven Tanger Center for the Performing Arts."

http://www.news-record.com/gallery/n...9bb30f31a.html

http://myfox8.com/2013/09/09/whats-next-for-gpac/

[urbanscraper]

Here is a website placeholder with the center logo but the official launch of the website will be in October

http://www.tangerperformingarts.com/

[urbanscraper]

The groundbreaking for the Steven Tanger Center for the Performing Arts begins next fall. However some demolition will take place in the next week or two. The old Greensboro Inn motel, which has been an eyesore for years is coming down.

http://www.news-record.com/news/loca...7ed23866a.html