There have been several proposals concerning what to do with the architecturally important Memorial Coliseum in the Rose Quarter, including tearing it down to make way for a minor league baseball stadium and building a state of the art velodrome inside its gossamer shell. I’ve always mentioned to anyone that would listen that it would make a great outer shell for a concert hall. Since the outer, square, glass shell is self supporting without any internal pillars, it would be relatively easy to build an acoustically isolated inner concert hall structure, and having an outer, weather protected area that could be used for dining and other incidental uses for concert hall patrons. A similar concept is the Kimmel Center in Philadelphia, which has a huge, Quonset hut-like glass structure that encases the inner performing halls (a main concert hall and a smaller chamber music hall).
http://www.flickr.com/photos/23537504@N00/ / CC BY 2.0
I don’t think this is such a crazy idea, and it would be a wonderful space in which to place a concert hall. Parking facilities would already be in place, there’s a major confluence of mass transit options to reach the area, and it could be a real showcase venue for the city. What do you think?
10 replies on “memorial coliseum as concert hall?”
I like this idea, and I wish I’d thought of it myself. I’ve been to the Kimmel Center in Philadelphia, and I love it.
I agree! – and keep waiting for this idea to start gaining traction. I bet there’s room within the bowl for both a concert hall and a separate opera house configuration, and then space elsewhere in the complex to house the administrative offices of the Symphony, the Opera, the Ballet, and perhaps others (with shared ticket office facilities) – as well as ample warehouse space for everyone.
Terrific idea!
Portland has a nice downtown cultural core, that it needs to enhance by building a new concert hall around the same area, rather than moving everything (Opera, Symphony and Ballet) across the river, leaving the Keler and the Schnitz empty for long periods of time. Imagine the traffic 20000 people descending for a Blazers game next door and the Opera and Symphony having concerts at the same time!
Second, there is no indication the City has any money or that the few deep pockets around here (including mainly Nike) give a flip about (high) culture.
Third, the real problem in this city is the very survival of the major cultural organizations, not where they will be housed. You can fuss about your venue all you want, it won’t do you any good if you go out of business (New York City Opera, anyone?)
Fourth (run on sentence alert) I have to try very hard to convince myself that the average Portlander who would theoretically exert some political pressure to the city leadership for a concert hall instead of a Mall with a money making Hooters Restaurant at the site of the MC (or a sports venue) is not a cultural neadertal.
I mean neanderthal, I am a spelling neanderthal.
Nikos, you raise some good points and it is hard not to share your pessimism. I can’t see something like this happening immediately but I still think this idea has some viability. Granted, conflicts with Blazer games may be a problem but I don’t see that as an insurmountable hurdle. I do not believe that the number of concflicts will be that great. As for funding, the beauty of this idea is that it may not cost nearly as much as building a brand new facility from scratch. The economy is bound to pick up so the necessary funds may eventually become available. Yes, the symphony has to survive the current financial crisis and that is the most pressing concern. But I have to believe that it will. This city really needs a first- rate performing arts facility. This is a very intriguing idea that should be explored at the appropriate time.
Certainly, there is no chance that this could happen, at least not within the next decade, I think, but I felt like someone had to at least put a fine arts use alternative out there with the baseball park and the velodrome. I’d rather have a healthy Oregon Symphony playing in the Schnitz than a dead orchestra with a half-built hall, no question. As for the downtown core – where would one get the land at this point? The South Waterfront has no more open space until the shipyard folds up shop. The area around the train station north of the Pearl District is filling up. Most of the other locations near the South Park Blocks probably don’t have enough space in the small blocks to make something viable, unless you involve some sort of bridge over one of the East/West streets (or like the art museum, remove the street to create a double-length block). At the very least, here’s a spot which the city already owns. The more cynical side of me thinks that maybe the city could leverage Paul Allen to build the concert hall complex in exchange for some more tax breaks for the Rose Garden/Blazers money losers.
Actually, I suspect PCPA wouldn’t shed too many tears over losing the big arts companies as tenants in the Schnitz and the Keller. It would free up a lot more dates for rock concerts and touring productions, to whom a significantly higher rental fee is charged. The venues wouldn’t sit empty.
Charles, I think this is an idea with lots of potential – as long as we could move SouthPark, Higgins and the Heathman with us! Otherwise, I worry that many members of our audience would find it hard to follow.
E
True, but there have been plans for some sort of boutique hotel in the Rose Quarter area, and I’m sure some great restaurants would locate in order to be near the premier cultural venue in the city!