Gaillard Auditorium design passes first approval

Dec 16, 2010
Source: abcnews4.com
By: Courtney Rochon

CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCIV) -- A new-and-improved Gaillard auditorium is one step closer to become a reality.

The Charleston Board of Architectural Review approved the conceptual plan for the redesign Thursday.

The board approved the design six to one, but that's after dozens of people from the Historic Charleston Foundation to neighbors voiced their concerns about the plan.

"It will be a wonderful addition to the architecture of this world renowned city. The building will be made substantially more handsome on the outside and inside there will not be a performing arts space in America that will rival what will be built here," said Mayor Joe Riley.

In the conceptual design, the performance space will be scaled down by nearly one thousand seats and acoustics will be improved. The city will build offices around the outside of the current structure. The loading docks that sit on Anson Street right now, will be concealed in a courtyard. But some neighbors want them moved altogether.

"Overall it's a great idea, but I think that because it's a neighborhood, because we have 2 churches within one block of this building, we have to pay attention and be sensitive of that," said neighbor Ellen Harley.

The project will cost $142 million. The city already has raised about $71 million from private donations, $20 million of that is from an anonymous donor. Mayor Riley said they'll be able to use existing city funding sources for the rest.

"Rather than pay rent we'll use the money to build the offices which also form the exterior of the building. So it's like the stars were aligned for this moment and we had to seize the moment," said Mayor Riley.

There's still a lot of fine tuning that needs to be done before the final plans are approved. Construction isn't expected to start until the summer of 2012.

Thursday was of the first of three stages of approval of the plan.

The next is preliminary approval, which gives more detail on how everything will be constructed.

Next is final approval which details every step of the plan.

The City hopes to have the renovations completed by September of 2014.