Excitement builds for arts center | Arts & Culture

Highlands Ranch Herald/Chris Michlewicz

More than one year out from its official opening, anticipation is growing as the Lone Tree Arts Center takes shape.

The 500-seat performing arts facility has been under construction southeast of Lincoln Avenue and RidgeGate Parkway since March and remains on pace for a grand opening in late August 2011. Ground work has been laid, and the taxpayer-funded arts center is about 30 percent complete, said Seth Hoffman, assistant city manager for Lone Tree.

The $21 million complex will be home to the Lone Tree Symphony Orchestra, the Colorado Stage Company and Passport to Culture events. Several theater and dance groups already are approaching officials about scheduling events there in fall and winter 2011, said Lisa Rigsby Peterson, executive director of the Lone Tree Arts Center.

Recently, the city released a press announcement entitled “Lone Tree Arts Center Adds Fire to the Local Economy and Ignites Passion for the Arts” that touted the expected economic impact of the center on surrounding businesses.

The Lincoln Commons retail area around the arts center is quickly growing: Garbanzo Mediterranean Grill, Five Guys Burgers and Fries and Qdoba Mexican Grill already have opened, and other shops are slated for an opening in the coming months. Apartments and townhomes are under construction south of the venue.

The Lone Tree Cultural Arts Foundation has teamed with the center for a capital campaign that will raise up to $2 million for more intricate amenities. Instead of a modest outdoor stage, ground-level seating, and a grass-seating area, organizers hope to give the terrace theater a “more formal finish,” Rigsby Peterson said. Read More...