If this post bores you and you start skimming, just read the second part and shoot Jim Brennan a quick email.
As pointed out in this article the city is soliciting feedback from the public on the development of the railyard. Here are the details. It boils down to a meeting this thursday from 6-800 at the train depot. As loathe as I am to dwell in a beer and wine-free atmosphere during this prime afterwork time, I think I will go. This is an interesting event, perhaps Bill Burg can elaborate on it as I imagine he might have something to do with it? (oops, he already did on the forum, here's what he wrote:
I hoped to have a map to post today...I'll add it once I get it, but here's the skinny:The Sacramento Old City Association presents its quarterly Preservation Roundtable, Saturday June 9 at 9:00 AM. Admission is $5 at the door.The Roundtable will be held in the paint shop of the Southern Pacific Shops. For those unfamiliar with the Shops, it is the building farthest to the right in the Shops complex when facing north from the Amtrak passenger platform.How to get there: By car, take I-5 to Richards Blvd. and turn towards the river (left if you're coming from downtown, right if you're coming from the north.) Turn left on Jibboom Street and look for the UP signs. Follow the signs through the Shops past the Paint Shop, where there is a large open area for parking.By light rail, take the Gold Line to the Sacramento Valley station. Walk a bit east to the end of the platform, cross the tracks and just walk across the field to the Paint Shop, which is the building farthest to the right.The Preservation Roundtable includes various speakers from the city of Sacramento, the local development community and those involved in historic preservation activities. Thanks to Thomas Enterprises, who have made the Shops building available for this event.At 12:00 PM, the meeting will conclude with an exclusive tour of the Shops complex, led by California State Railroad Museum staff.
And, the second call to action for the day. OK, so if you were paying attention the other day, you saw that I linked to some off-the-record scuttlebutt from the skyscraper forum about a remark made by Jim Brennan. Jim Brennan has recently acquired the block of 10th and K that the Crest is on, minus the building that the Pyramid Brewery is in. He was talking about turning the Crest into something Julliard-like (if you read the Vellinga article linked in the first paragraph you see that another developer has similar plans for the railyards). Some of us freaked out a bit, but a well-connected heckasac friend contacted Jim Brennan and he was suprised to find out about all the events that happen at the Crest and welcomed feedback from the community. So let's give him some feedback, in a polite and positive way (I know, it will be hard). Let him know what a treasure the Crest is, and how we would like it to remain a movie and performance venue. I for one will note that I would welcome any changes that would lead to increased success for the Crest but that I will cry a river if arthouse movies start passing us by if any changes result in fewer movies booked at the Crest. It would also be nice to emphasize that the Crest has been the one thing on that block that is open and successful for a while now (before Pyramid) so we might not want to mess with success.
Here's his email
jbrennan@scopusadvisors.com
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
10 comments:
There's something about the Crest in the Bee today. I'm trying not to freak out, but it's hard.
http://www.sacbee.com/101/story/206689.html
don't forget to write that email!
I just sent mine. I'd print it except it makes me sound embarrassingly square.
The Crest would make for some mighty nice lofts.
If the Crest is brought down, that's it for locally owned and operated independent theatres.
The Varsity is in Davis. The Guild shows a movie about once a year or two. Old State is in Auburn. Does the Bob Hope even show movies?
I don't think arthouse movies would completely pass by Sacto.
Tower would continue taking the ones that would bring in the most money, and the ones they've always shown as favors for the movie studios. And some of the ones in between.
They don't want to show stuff like Mike & Spike, and as local Film Fests have found out, they're hard to deal with. But it'll get better when they're the only game in town. I've found that a New York City ran monopoly always does the best they can do for the little people in the sticks.
yeah, the bob hope does play movies, I think mostly in the form of classics (look, it's another thing that Stockton has that we don't in addition to a rasputin records!). I'm mostly tripping on the fact that quite a few of the smaller movies would pass sac by with half as many "arthouse" screens available.
i really do hope that folks offer jim brennan their feedback!
it is also my hope that by keeping folks aware of what's going on in the central city and giving them the tools neccesary to supply feedback to the powers that be we can make our presence known. in my talks with folks recently i learned that the residents of midtown are an under represented group. this is something we can change in a variety of ways some time consuming some not so much.
i'm gonna be at that meeting on thur too. there are a lot of projects coming down the pike and this is a good time to make ourselves visible. i hope a bunch of people can attend!
Oh yeah, I also sent a square email to Jim Brennan.
I wonder if Bob Hope is showing public domain classics.
But yeah, no movies at the Crest would cut Sacto screens in half. Crest has 3, Tower has 3.
Shiny Object doesn't have a 35mm projector, so I won't count them until someone wins the lotto and gives Shiny Object the Guild with a beer/wine license and a pizza oven.
And Tower shows movies as favors for movie studios/distros so they'll get good movies in NYC. Reading, who owns Tower, owns 2 of the top 10 highest grosses movie theatres in NYC.
We'll all suffer a bit, so Nick Offer can see a better movie in NYC. Damn that !!! for making us all suffer.
Anything so he can get more rides in the Chili Copter!
Tell Offer to stay out of that Chili Copter! It's only a matter of time til the Chili copter goes all Stevie Ray Vaughn/Bill Graham.
can't wait!
Actually, becky, the event posted about in my weblog is the SOCA Preservation Roundtable this Saturday, not the Railyards planning event this Thursday. And I had to update it because I had some times wrong:
http://sacramentohistory.blogspot.com/
Basically, the Thursday night meeting is a marketing survey at the Amtrak station to show off what they have planned so far and see what people seem to like the most. Generally they do have free food at this sort of thing, and I wouldn't rule out free beer/wine either.
The Saturday morning event is an actual PHYSICAL TOUR THROUGH THE RAILYARDS and a presentation on historic preservation issues--the panel discussion is focused on how to preserve (rather than replace) historic windows, which is a lot cheaper than replacing them with those icky vinyl things. But hey, TOUR THROUGH THE RAILYARDS for five bucks is the draw, if anyone here can wake up early enough to make a 9 AM thing on Saturday morning it's totally worth it. No beer/wine but there will be coffee and donuts.
I know that there are two different events, perhaps my post was confusing.
Oooh...free beer and wine! That's a good clarification of what it is, I wasn't stoked about going because I knew I wouldn't speak up, but I can focus group like a motherfucker.
wow, that sounded really dorky.
Post a Comment