Kris Eitland

San Diego Business

Mayor gives NTC Foundation financial boost

Funds will help Luce Auditorium Use Study
By Kris Eitland
Posted on Jun 01 2007
Last updated Jun 03 2007

San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders has pledged funds for a study that will determine the fate of the historic Luce Auditorium in the cultural district of Liberty Station in Point Loma. At a news conference in front of the Luce Auditorium on Wednesday, Sanders announced the allocation of $14,580 to help the NTC Foundation conduct a Needs and Use Assessment Study for the auditorium. The funds are coming from the Commission for Arts and Culture Mayor and Council Allocation Fund.

"We're here this morning to reaffirm our commitment to arts and culture," Sanders said. "We want to help the NTC Foundation move forward with planning one of the most significant buildings at the NTC Promenade, the Luce Auditorium."

The NTC Foundation oversees the restoration and leasing of historic buildings at the former Naval Training Center. Sanders said the foundation is well on its way to raising the $65,000 needed for the study that will help begin the critical planning work for the building. "Thanks to community support, $53,700 has been raised with another $11,300 remaining," Sanders said. Every few minutes he had to pause because of roaring jets. "We'll have to sound-proof the building," he chuckled.

Built in 1941, millions of Navy recruits watched training films at the Luce during the day. On weekends, recruits and residents enjoyed Hollywood films and radio broadcasts, and performances by celebrities such as Bob Hope, Nat King Cole and Jack Benny. But that was a long time ago.

The Luce has been closed for ten years, and it needs a multi-million dollar makeover. The NTC Foundation still has to determine the best use of the venue and what it would cost to renovate and operate it. A pirate dinner theater wants to move in, but at a forum in April, hundreds of residents and members of the arts and dance community demanded that the Luce be available only to the community. Critics worry that a pirate attraction would damage the cultural integrity of the arts district and create parking problems. With this study, the foundation hopes to find a happy financial balance between private and community use.

A commercial tenant would pay more rent than a non-profit group, but City Councilman Kevin Faulkner said he's determined to avoid private use and save the Luce for the community. "One of the options a few months ago was to have a private operator come in," Faulkner said, "and that might have precluded the type of community use we wanted to have." He said having the support of the community and the mayor sends a strong, positive message about securing the Luce.

"We're dealing with lots of issues in the City of San Diego," Faulkner said, "but whether it's budgets, pensions, or other things, we must never forget our arts and culture and how important they are -- and this auditorium."

There are 20 non-profit organizations now in residence at the NTC Promenade. Several from those organizations attended the news conference and said the Mayor's support will get people's attention. Nancy Cox of the San Diego Water Color Society said if the Luce is renovated, it would draw many people to NTC and benefit the city as a whole.

"We want young people and families to come here," she said, "and a theater will make them come here. We love the dance people here too, because they bring in young people who are the future of this area."

Jean Isaacs, John Malashock and San Diego Ballet directors Robin Sheretz Morgan and Javier Velasco, who are in residence at Dance Place adjacent to the Luce, are perhaps the most interested in having the building restored. They were pleased with Sanders' and Faulkner's support, but remain cautiously optimistic.

"We all moved here with the idea that the Luce would be available for dance," Velasco said. We'd like to see the structure reconfigured from 1,800 seats to a sleek 500-seat space."

Malashock said he hopes the auditorium is rebuilt within three-to-five years. "This is a stunning turn-around from a few months ago," Malashock said. "Now we have a shot at seeing this happen for us. I'm delighted to see the mayor here. It's a step in the right direction."

Isaacs said she's confident that people in the community will support the project. "I hope there can be a European style restaurant inside, and it'd be wonderful if they'd keep those little pop-up foot lights. It will be a wonderful dance theater and offer so much."

Alan Ziter, the NTC Foundation's executive director, said the study will cost $65,000, and once they determine what to do with the Luce, it will probably cost $15 million to $20 million to renovate. "That's when I'll need an angel to come in and help," Ziter said. "Right now, people can send donations to help us do the study."

The NTC Foundation will hire former Old Globe general manager Tom Hall and the consulting firm of AlbertHall to complete the study. Because the auditorium is on the National Register of Historic places, renovations will have to protect the Spanish Colonial Revival architecture and art deco details.

The Luce is one of 26 historic buildings inside the NTC Historic District at Liberty Station, a community of homes, businesses, schools, parks and cultural events. NTC covers more than 235 acres and the promenade runs nearly a mile.

About the author: Kris Eitland's critiques and features have appeared in Dance Magazine, Dance San Diego Magazine, San Diego CityBeat, sandiegotheaterscene.com, and sandiego.com since 2006. Her writing career includes stints in both commercial and public radio news. She studied dance extensively at the University of Minnesota-Duluth and SDSU and holds a journalism degree
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