— image credit: Courtesy image.
by KIRK BOXLEITNER, Marysville Globe Reporter
Jan 16, 2014
MARYSVILLE — The Red Curtain Foundation for the Arts has entered the next phase of settling into its new home in Marysville, but it needs the public’s help to complete the transition.
Scott Randall, president of the Red Curtain Foundation for the Arts, started the nonprofit organization in June of 2009, and in June of 2013, the group moved into the former Dunn Lumber building in Marysville.
“The next step in the process came on Dec. 3 of last year, when I was doing a site walkthrough of the facility with the building commissioner and the fire marshall,” Randall said. “I asked them what we would need to do in order to start operating from this building sooner.”
The Foundation won’t be hosting concerts or plays from the Dunn Lumber building for a while yet, but if Red Curtain can raise the funds to get the facility in shape to meet the current regulations for fire safety and ADA compliance, then the group can provide a space for classes, meetings and other small events, to help it generate semi-regular revenue toward the down payment that needs to be made before more significant renovations are performed.
“We’re looking to add extras, to tear up pavement, and to put up and knock down walls, but we can’t do that now, because we don’t actually own the building yet,” Randall said, noting that the Red Curtain Foundation for the Arts is still operating under a lease agreement with Dunn Lumber. “In the meantime, because the facility has had hardly any updates since it was first built in 1967, we need to upgrade its fire system, make its restrooms ADA-compliant, put up new exit signs and install new doorhandles. And we need to do all of that immediately, before we can begin to offer even scaled-down programming on a regular basis.”
Beyond that, Randall eventually plans to install sprinkler systems and redesign the building’s exterior to include an enclosed space outdoors, but while conceptual artist Cassandra Canady has illustrated what Randall hopes the fully refurbished facility will ultimately look like, and engineer and architect Doug Walter has even drawn up a schematic for its interior layout, Randall himself knows that the Marysville community will need some persuading.
“What I’m finding is that folks in Marysville are very excited about having the Red Curtain Foundation for the Arts in their town, but they’re still saying, ‘Okay prove it,'” Randall said. “By hosting these smaller events to start with, we can prove that this center can be a benefit to the community. In an ideal world, it’d be nice to generate enough donations and revenue to have our facility fully ready for the art season this fall, maybe even by launching it with a concert, but if it takes us a while longer, at least by taking care of the immediate concerns, we can do enough good stuff to sustain ourselves and show some of what we’re capable of.”
The Red Curtain Foundation for the Arts invites those interested in donating or learning more to visit its Indiegogo fundraising campaign page at www.indiegogo.com/projects/new-marysville-community-arts-center.
“Also, we’ve always looking for volunteers,” Randall said. “There are lots of opportunities to participate, and those will increase as time goes by.”
For more information on the Red Curtain Foundation for the Arts, log onto www.redcurtainfoundation.org.
KIRK BOXLEITNER, Marysville Globe Reporter
kboxleitner@marysvilleglobe.com or 360-659-1300 Ext. 5052