Tag: Oregon Main Street Program

The show must go on

Posted on by Julia Havens

This year, the Community Planning Workshop at the University of Oregon explored its glamorous side with the Oregon Historic Theaters Project. Robert Parker, CPW Director and Project Advisor, along with Aniko Drlik-Muehleck, Project Manager, hit the road with student team members Dana Nichols, Rodney Bohner, John Jackson, and Craig Wiroll to explore these incredible cultural gems that have anchored downtown’s and delighted audiences throughout the state of Oregon for over 50 years.

ABOUT THE PROJECT
CPW undertook a 3-part investigation of historic theaters and their potential to act as economic development catalysts. Phase 1 located theaters across the state that qualified as “historic” (50 years or older).

Phase 2 began in January 2015 with a needs assessment surveys sent to theaters asking operators and owners to explain their business model and describe their needs related to building rehabilitation and maintenance, equipment upgrades, programming, and marketing.

Phase 3 coordinated marketing, where CPW worked with theater operators and owners along with regional tourism agencies to explore marketing strategies and link theater professionals with Oregon’s tourism industry to help theaters capitalize on their historic and entertainment value.

WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?
This project comes at a particularly critical moment for downtown theaters. The rising cost of maintenance and operation has dealt a hefty financial blow and forced many theaters to close their doors. Movie theaters, for example, face $50,000 minimum to upgrade to digital projection systems. In a town with less than 3000 people, how can a theater afford such an investment? As it turns out, not too many as you will see by the statistics and theatre fans in this video documenting the Oregon Historic Theatres project.

Together with Oregon Main Street, Pacific Power, and Travel Oregon (project partners), CPW hopes this project will build on the energy of grassroots movements across the state and the documentation, needs assessments, and tourism coordination will answer questions and will generate resources so historic theaters can adapt. And as they say in theatre, the show must go on!

Special to curtain call to Craig Wiroll, who took on the CPW video challenge and produced one amazing video that truly captures the story of this project. Thank you Craig.

About the Oregon Historic Theatres Team from left to right:

Aniko Drlik-Muehleck, Dana Nichols, Rodney Bohner, John Jackson, Craig Wiroll

Aniko Drlik-Muehleck, originally from Berkeley, CA, is now a Master of Community and Regional Planning candidate at the University of Oregon and participated in the Community Service Center’s RARE AmeriCorps Program – Resource Assistance for Rural Environments with the City of Pendleton from 2012-2013. 

Craig Wiroll is a journalist and farmer-turned-Master of Public Administration student with high hopes of changing the world. For now, he’s just going to focus on the UO Campus. Craig is also a two-time AmeriCorps alum from Wisconsin, who enjoys public radio, hiking and food. 

Dana Nichols is a first year Community and Regional Planning student who enjoys cooking, gardening, and playing with her cat, Dinkus. Although she is a New Jersey native and could live off their delicious pizza, Dana would much rather be watching a Packer game in Wisconsin or sailing on a boat in Maine. 

John Jackson is a Midwesterner is a first year Community and Regional Planning Masters student at the University of Oregon. Growing up both in Chicago, Illinois and Lincoln, Nebraska, Jackson is an avid geographer who has taken his talents to the Pacific Northwest to study the craft of urban planning and the unique ways of land use, built environment, and transportation that U of O has to offer. 

Rodney Bohner is a concurrent Master’s student in Community and Regional Planning as well as Historic Preservation at the University of Oregon. Originally from Pennsylvania, Rodney has worked on cultural resource projects in the Keystone state as well as Colorado, West Virginia, and Massachusetts.

 

Respecting the Craft of Theater

Posted on by Julia Havens

Oregon-Historic-Theatres-Team

Time flies when you’re having fun. I still can’t believe we are past week 6 of the term, and finally getting into the thick of our Oregon Historic Theater project. If you were wondering about what I’m referring to, our Community Planning Workshop Team is working on a project to preserve, renovate, and promote historic theaters in the state of Oregon.

Theaters have had a substantial effect on towns nationwide, and being in Oregon this stays true more than ever. Not only do these theaters contribute to the economic aspect of these neighborhoods and communities, they bring a certain sense of culture to the places they are located in. These theaters have so much history that it would be foolish to not want to preserve these timeless treasures. Partnering with organizations such as Pacific Power, Travel Oregon, and Oregon Main Street, their want to preserve historic theaters stems far beyond the campus of the University of Oregon.

This past week we finally broke down what theaters we are going to be reaching out to for our case studies with our project. Each member of the team has two theaters and one theater program or initiative. These theaters are usually at the state level or on a wider scale than just a local scale. One thing I like about the theaters we’ve chosen is that they’re from a variety of place. From all parts of the state these theaters are unique to the place that they’re located and each give back something different to their community. From here in the Pacific Northwest to the far region of New England, these theaters are marvels to be held for everyone who visits them.

One of the most intriguing aspects of this project is listening to the people who truly care about this project  – our clients. Talking with people such as Erik Andersson from Pacific Power and Sheri Stuart from Main Street Oregon this past week, these people in elevated positions who truly care a lot about these theaters and what they mean to communities in Oregon. It’s amazing and it is something that has made me strive to work harder while partnering on this project, as I’m sure it has for other members of my team.

Growing up back in Lincoln, Nebraska, my high school was a huge theater school, winning multiple state championships and being known throughout the district as the “theater school.” I can honestly say that this helped me appreciate the art of theatre even more. So when I was approached with this project, this was one of the first things that went through my head. The craft of theatre is important to many people around the world. The ability to host this craft in a venue like the ones we are trying to preserve here in Oregon is one to be marveled.

 

John Jackson Oregon Historic Theatres Community Planning Workshop CPWAbout the author: John Jackson is a Midwesterner turned West Coaster and a first year Community and Regional Planning Masters student at the University of Oregon. Growing up both in Chicago, Illinois and Lincoln, Nebraska, John is an avid geographer who has taken his talents to the Pacific Northwest to study the craft of urban planning and the unique ways of land use, built environment, and transportation that U of O has to offer. In his spare time, John enjoys drumming, playing basketball, and working out at the campus recreation center. He is an active member of U of O LiveMove.