City for Champions project gets new support
While opinion remains mixed on the city’s City for Champions project, organizers have received the backing of the local arts community.
At a recent standing-room-only meeting of 250 downtown, arts and cultural leaders expressed interest in helping to plan the design and appearance for the project’s four venues.
The venues include a downtown sports and event center, an Olympic hall of fame, a visitors’ center at the Air Force Academy and a sports medicine center at The University of Colorado-Colorado Springs. All but the center are in continuing stages of development.
Arts community leaders say the project presents an opportunity to build on the city’s cultural tradition, much as key historical figures such as General William Palmer and Spencer Pensrose did.
“Projects like this — that have a chance to create iconic buildings, iconic spaces and great public art — can bring a community together and have a much broader impact than just the activity at that particular site itself,” David Dahlin, president of the city’s Fine Arts Center, said.
Dahlin said the arts community preferred to have become involved sooner, but that it’s not too late to have an impact on the venues’ final appearance.
“A downtown sports and events center could also easily be transformed into an outdoor performance space,” Nathan Newbrough, president of the Colorado Springs Philharmonic, said. “We don’t know yet. It’s still in the very early stages of planning. But that kind of possibility is there.”
“What if (the center) can be kind of a Colorado Springs version of Millennium Park, which I just left behind in Chicago?” George Preston, general manager of KCME 88.7 FM asked. “It’s a big, wide field and it’s a huge draw whether there are concerts going on or not.”
The executive director of a private cultural fundraising group said a team-up between project organizers and the arts community will create economic benefits for the city.
“Sixty-five percent of all adult travelers visit an art or cultural event on their trip,” David Siegel of the Bee Vradenburg Foundation said. “And of that 65 percent, 32 percent extend their trip.”
Art community leaders said they have no specifics yet on how they want to be involved in the venues, but plan to discuss and formalize ideas soon.
Laura Neumann, spokeswoman for the project, said organizers are thrilled to have the art community’s support.
“Who doesn’t love the arts?” she said. (Art community leaders) know our history is built on the arts but I don’t think either one of us imagined just the goose bumps (involved).”
