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Ike Leggett: What is Your Plan?

On January 15, 2010, County Executive Ike Leggett announced his recommended capital budget. I'm very sorry to say that Ike Leggett failed to fund the auditorium in his capital budget.

When the school system overrode community objections and took the Elizabeth Stickley auditorium out of service eleven years ago (when the old Montgomery Blair High School building was converted), Silver Spring was deprived of a valuable and well used community resource. Neighbors have worked very hard to correct this mistake, contributing over $60,000 in personal funds and countless hours of volunteer service. Our District 20 delegation in the state legislature (Senator Jamie Raskin, Delegate Shelia Hixson, Delegate Tom Hucker, and Delegate Heather Mizeur) and our local County Councilmember Valerie Ervin have been enthusiastic. Parents, students, nearby residents, and local performing groups were excited at the potential. In 2005, the state provided a $600,000 bond bill that required matching funds, and graciously extended the deadline in 2007 and 2009. Last year, the County Council funded an architect's feasibility study. We thought the county was on the right path. Sadly, in announcing his new capital budget, County Executive Ike Leggett was not with us. Despite his pre-election promises, and despite the large growth in this year's capital budget, especially for schools, the renovation was excluded. And now, the $600,000 state funding will likely lapse.

There is only so much the citizenry can do on its own. We simply do not know what Ike Leggett's plan is. But we do know that the building will not repair itself and the deterioration will eventually affect the adjacent Sligo Creek Elementary School and Silver Spring International Middle School, which could clearly benefit from the auditorium but instead face risks associated with its disuse. I was in the auditorium yesterday, and the condition is noticeably worse than it was just a year ago.

Our goal was a simple one - take something that already existed, get it back into operation at the best cost possible, and make it a valuable resource that would bring together our diverse community. What are we left with now?

If you would like to ask Mr. Leggett exactly what his plan is, you can call him at 240-777-2500 or send him e-mail at ocemail@montgomerycountymd.gov

I appreciate your continued support and share your hope that our county will do better by us.

Stuart Moore
President
Old Blair Auditorium Project

Shuttered since 1998 after 29 years of operation, the Old Blair Auditorium awaits a new audience! Help us save the Old Blair Auditorium.

Architects Identify Several Renovation Options

The Feasibility Study is done and is now available. In the report, the architects identified several options for renovating the former Elizabeth Stickley Auditorium into a multi-use space with a performance auditorium and adjacent rooms, all for community and school use. You can read a summary or download the full study.

Small Sketch of One of the Renovation Options

Thanks for Attending the Auditorium Tour

Thanks to everyone, especially the Blair alums who came out to tour the auditorium on Saturday, October 17!

Mural Installation

Be sure to stop by to see the auditorium mural that was installed by the former entrance to the auditorium on September 12, 2009.

Neighborhood kids created artwork during several community art classes that we sponsored in the Fall of 2007. Then, artist Stephanie Ney from Art for the People conveyed the kids' creations onto large mural boards. The project was funded by Old Blair Auditorium Project, and by a grant from the Maryland State Arts Council.

Montgomery County Councilmember and close-by neighbor Valerie Ervin stopped by during the mural installation (shown here with some Old Blair Auditorium Project board members).

See the pictures and watch the video

Community Meetings!

The community meetings with architects from Grimm+Parker have concluded. Over the course of the summer, the study will be prepared and cost estimates will be developed.

See the article by Jason Tomassini in the Washington Post Montgomery Extra edition (May 21, 2009) for a brief summary.

Please Make a Donation!

Please make a donation, either online or by postal mail.

The green button above will take you to a secure web site hosted by PayPal to accept your credit card information. The Old Blair Auditorium Project will not have access to your private credit card information.

County Council Education Committee Project Review

On November 24, 2008, the County Council's Education Committee reviewed the progress of the Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) facilities planning process for renovation of the Old Blair Auditorium into a multi-use facility that can be used for musical and theatrical auditorium performances as well as other functions, such as after-school programs and community events, including programs by run by the County's Health and Human Services department and Department of Recreation. The specific uses have not been determined -- the formal portion of the MCPS study (in early 2009) will determine those uses and their associated costs.

This is a more inclusive and flexible renovation concept than the professional theatre concept originally proposed in 2004, yet still meets the needs of the arts community users that we've worked with over the past several years. To accommodate the desired uses of this space will most likely result in an auditorium that is smaller than 1,200 seats, but still big enough for medium-to-large performances.

Read the meeting packet (880k PDF file).

Backstage Door Mural is Finished!

Kids at Silver Spring's CREATE Arts Center designed and painted an auditorium-themed mural to brighten up the door.

Click on the picture to see a picture of the backstage door from inside the auditorium.

Neighborhood Art and Craft Show Was a Great Success!

Some of our neighbors organized an art and craft show, with about 100 people attending. This is planned to be an annual event to benefit local charities, and this year's event benefited the Old Blair Auditorium Project!

Our thanks go out to everyone who attended.

Please Donate!

oldblairauditorium.org/donate

We invite all of our suporters to make a tax deductible contribution to the Old Blair Auditorium Project.

Maryland State Arts Council Awards Grant to Create Auditorium Mural

To help design the mural, we offered a series of FREE Community Art Classes, designed for children 6 to 14 and their families. The classes were presented by our friends at Art for the People.

Thanks to everyone who signed up! Stay tuned for information about how the mural will be created.

The art mural project is supported by a grant from the Maryland State Arts Council, an agency dedicated to cultivating a vibrant cultural community where the arts thrive. The Council receives funding from the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency, which believes that a great nation deserves great art. We are very pleased to have the State's support!

On Saturday, September 29, 2007, Blair seniors Andrew Joseph and Eric Merchant presented "Rock for Renovation", a benefit concert to help renovate the Old Blair Auditorium. The concert was part of their Communications Arts Program senior project.

The show featured Derek James (from NYC), The Fighting Janes, Neil Foley (Irish Fiddle), and Blair High School's InToneNation (a cappella singing).

The concert raised $2,000 for the auditorium project!

It was great fun. We hope to have pictures and video available soon.

In the meantime, we'd like to thank Andrew and Eric, the bands, the volunteers, Montgomery Blair High School, and the community for making this a great success. We'd also like to thank Councilmembers Valerie Ervin and George Leventhal for coming out to the show.

An update from Councilmember Valerie Ervin's June 2007 newsletter (The Ervin Edition):

One of my priorities is to revive the Old Blair Auditorium, (located at Silver Spring International Middle School) by creating a mixed-use facility for the performing arts, in-school and after school programs, and community use space. During the past six months, I have worked with Old Blair Auditorium Inc. to identify community partners who are looking for space. These partners include the Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS), the Montgomery County Collaboration Council for Children, Youth, and Families, the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) and Department of Recreation, the Silver Spring YMCA, and other local non-profits.

MCPS has written a letter of intent to help restore the facility and has agreed to conduct a new space analysis which incorporates each partner's programmatic needs, while retaining the auditorium as a major venue for the performing arts. At the federal level, I have requested support from Senators Benjamin Cardin and Barbara Mikulski and have met with Congressman Albert Wynn, who is fully supportive of the project.

New Collaborators Add Momentum

Thanks to the energetic efforts of County Councilmember Valerie Ervin and her staff, we've started working with the Montgomery County Public Schools, the Montgomery County Collaboration Council for Children, Youth and Families, and several County agencies to determine how to optimally use the facility -- not just for performing arts and school uses -- but also for the benefit of youth and families in our community. The boarded up portion of the building includes more than just seats and a stage -- there are office, hallway, and storage spaces, as well. We believe that all of the space can and should be put to good use.

Montgomery County Public School System Voices Support

Superintendent of Schools Dr. Jerry Weast has announced support for the renovation project. The school system will perform the space analysis required to determine the design layout and costs associated with creating a multi-use facility for the Old Blair Auditorium.

The Old Blair Auditorium was once a major performing arts venue in Silver Spring, Maryland, and was one of the best-used facilities in the greater D.C. area. The auditorium, located in the former Montgomery Blair High School building at the corner of Dale Drive and Wayne Avenue, has been boarded up and now sits unused. This project aims to breathe life back into the auditorium and make the auditorium available for community use. For information about the project, see our About the Project page.

Check out some student photos
from Stevie Wonder's 1981 performance

(click on the polaroids!)

Click the picture to view.

Three students from Montgomery Blair High School's Communications Arts Program (Class of 2005) made a movie about the Old Blair Auditorium.

Thanks to Stephanie Nguyen, Daniel Ottalini, and Stasi Tyser for their excellent work!

The film is in Quicktime format.

Project Supporters:

Ike Leggett, Montgomery County Executive
Douglas Duncan, former Montgomery County Executive
Arts & Humanities Council of Montgomery County
Valerie Ervin, Montgomery County Council
Duchy Trachtenberg, Montgomery County Council
Marc Elrich, Montgomery County Council
Nancy Floreen, Montgomery County Council
George Leventhal, Montgomery County Council
Tom Perez, former member of Montgomery County Council
Steve Silverman, former member of Montgomery County Council
Jamie Raskin, Senator, Maryland Senate
Ida Ruben, former Senator, Maryland Senate
Sheila Hixson, Delegate, Maryland House
Heather Mizeur, Delegate, Maryland House
Tom Hucker, Delegate, Maryland House
Peter Franchot, Comptroller of Maryland; former Delegate, Maryland House
Gareth Murray, former Delegate, Maryland House
Derick Berlage, former Chairman, Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission
TheatreWorks/USA
Bach Sinfonia
Soul in Motion Players
Washington Ensemble Theater
Coral Cantigas/Latin American Chorus of Greater Washington and Diana Saez, Founder/Artistic Director
Culkin School of Traditional Irish Dance
Maryland Youth Ballet
Community Music, Inc. / Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer
Class Acts Arts
Carpe Diem Choral Arts Residency Project
National Council for the Traditional Arts
Institute of Musical Traditions
Liz Lerman Dance Exchange
Mason-Rhynes Productions
Silver Spring Stage
Joe's Movement Emporium
Folklore Society of Greater Washington
Washington National Opera's Young Artists' Program
Lumina Studio Theater
Capitol City Symphony
Just Theatre Company
Wayang Kulit and Gamelan Orchestra
Tappers with Attitude
Agis Center for Arts and Humanities/ Jon Jiang Liu, President/CEO
Clancy Works
Cantata Chamber Singers
Washington Musica Viva
Silverwinds Flute Quartet
Bhoomikaa, Inc.
Sutradhar Dance Institute
Dance Performance Group
Suto Dance Studio
Twinbrook School of Ballet
Expressive Arts Alliance
International Conservatory of Music
Symphony of the Potomac
Kathy Lally, Executive Director, Montgomery County Collaboration Council
Carol Garvey, M.D.,MPH, Chair of Montgomery County Collaboration Council Executive Committee
Carol Walsh, Senior Associate for Community Initiatives, Montgomery County Collaboration Council
Ilene Sparber, Manager, Linkages to Learning
Montgomery Preservation, Inc.
Silver Spring Historical Society/ Jerry McCoy, President
Progressive Maryland
Silver Spring Citizens Advisory Board
Seven Oaks-Evanswood Civic Association
Indian Spring Citizens Association
Marcus Johnson
Pilar Torres, Executive Director, Centro Familia
Roberta Gasbarre, Director, Discovery Theater/Smithsonian Institution
Eliot Pfanstiehl, President/CEO, Strathmore Music Center
Jerry Whiddon, Producing Artistic Director Emeritus, Round House Theater
Dave Lorentz, Executive Producer, Takoma Park JazzFest
Richard Ley, President, Silver Spring Stage
Linda Sullivan
Frankie Blackburn, Executive Director, IMPACT Silver Spring
Pete Jervey, Silver Spring Gateway Project Manager, JBG Company
Roger Lewis, architect, Washington Post columnist/cartoonist, and University of Maryland professor
Jon Palmer Claridge, former President of Arts & Humanities Council of Montgomery County, Director of Arlington County Cultural Affairs Division
Jennifer Betts, daughter of the late Keter Betts, legendary jazz musician
Susan Soorenko, Moorenko's Ice Cream Company
Marco Fortini, DaMarco Italian Gourmet
Lene Tsegaye, Kefa Cafe
Nikos Marmara, The Golden Flame Restaurant & Lounge
Pyramid Atlantic and Helen Frederick, Founder/Executive Artistic Director
Dr. Jerry Weast, Superintendent, Montgomery County Public Schools
Christopher Barclay, Member, Montgomery County Board of Education
Diantha Swift, Principal, Sligo Creek Elementary School
Vicky Parcan, Principal, Silver Spring International Middle School
Sligo Creek Elementary School PTSA
Silver Spring International Middle School PTSA
More than 1000 residents of neighboring communities who have signed petition calling on government officials to provide funds to support reopening the Old Blair Auditorium

What's New?

Feb 24, 2010	The Gazette writes about last ditch efforts to save the auditorium.
Feb 17, 2010	We have uploaded our testimony to the Montgomery County Council regarding the FY11 Capital Budget to the About the Project page (see the Current Documents section.
Dec 17, 2009	We have uploaded the County's Feasibility Study that identifies several renovation options.
Sept 14, 2009	Pictures of this past Saturday's mural installation are now available.
April 29, 2009	Vicki Van Grack wrote in with her memories of the auditorium.
Nov 26, 2008	The Gazette reports on the Montgomery County Council Education Committee review.
Nov 24, 2008	Project review at the County Council Education Committee meeting
May 14, 2008	The Gazette reports on the Montgomery County Council hearing on the auditorium. (Open the article and then page down to find the part that covers the auditorium project)
May 10, 2008	Neighbors hosted a local Art and Craft show and sale to raise money for the auditorium.
Nov 9, 2007	The Friday Home Guide in the Washington Times has a nice article about the reuse of old school buildings, mentioning the auditorium.
Sep 29, 2007	Blair High School students held a benefit concert for the auditorium as part of a school project, raising $2,000.
May 7, 2007	Our May 2007 Newsletter is available.
Apr 25, 2007	Superintendent of Schools agrees to perform space and cost analysis for the multi-use renovation.
Apr 24, 2007	Congressman Albert Wynn tours the auditorium.
Mar 20, 2007	Superintendent of Schools Dr. Jerry Weast announces support for the renovation.
Mar 1, 2007	Councilmembers Valerie Ervin, Mark Elrich, Nancy Floreen, and Duchy Trachtenberg write letter of support to Congress to request Federal funding for the project.
Jan 12, 2007	We've added pictures and a short story about Stevie Wonder's 1981 performance in the auditorium.
Sep 6, 2006	Our September 2006 Newsletter is available.
May 3, 2006	Community residents spoke out in favor of the auditorium at Count Council member Tom Perez's Silver Spring Community Meeting. See the pictures page for a few photos.
Dec 22, 2005	We were awarded a $2,400 grant from the Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County, partly funded by the Executive's Ball for the Benefit of Arts and Humanities. The grant will help us to implement a database management system and access training from the Maryland Association of Nonprofit Organizations.
Oct 1, 2005	Volunteers from Comcast and from the local community joined to improve the entrance to the auditorium as well as the two adjacent schools.
July 26, 2005	The IRS has granted the Old Blair Auditorium Project, Inc. 501(c)(3) charitable status, effective retroactively to September 30, 2004.
June 28, 2005	Councilmember Tom Perez issued a summary of the April 2005 meeting that he held to gather community input on the future of Silver Spring. Many meeting participants mentioned the Old Blair Auditorium as an import part of the future of Silver Spring. Read more about it on our News and Press page.
June 14, 2005	MCPS Board of Education (BOE) approves future transfer of the Old Blair Auditorium to the County government as surplus space. Read an excerpt of the BOE meeting minutes (PDF file).
June 3, 2005	Some posters from Stephanie Nguyen (Blair Class of '05) have been uploaded to the pictures and video page.
May 20, 2005	Some pictures are now available from our May 13th garden party fundraiser with local musicians Cathy Fink and Marcy Marxer.
May 4, 2005	We have posted the song lyrics for "Somewhere", which we sang to the Maryland State Senate and House.
Apr 13, 2005	Another excellent article in the Montgomery Gazette about our bond bill success and our testimony to the Montgomery County Council. See our news section.
Apr 8, 2005	This week, the Maryland state legislature approved $600,000 in bond bill funds for the project.
Mar 29, 2005	Two letters to the Editor of the Montgomery Gazette are available in our news section.
Mar 25, 2005	We've posted some new great stories from Marianne Szwec Leizure, Jean M. Caswell, and Kevin Meek.
Mar 24, 2005	The Washington Post printed a nice article about our efforts and our lobbying in Annapolis.
Mar 20, 2005	We've added the program covers from previous plays held in the auditorium.
Mar 17, 2005	The Washington Post has printed a nice letter to the Editor.
Mar 11, 2005	We have uploaded some of our key documentation about the project, including a project overview and a summary of our business plan.
Feb 25, 2005	Our 24-hour challenge is over. You help us exceed our goal, raising $6,435 (more than required for the matching $5,000 grant)!
Feb 24, 2005	Our 24-hour challenge is underway! An anonymous donor has offered $5,000 if we can raise and additional $5,000 in a 24 hour period. Help us reach this goal.
Feb 18, 2005	You can now make secure online donations using your credit card.
Feb 16, 2005	Two new articles about the project have been added to the News and Press page.
Feb 16, 2005	Some pictures from the auditorium tour are available.
Feb 14, 2005	Thanks to everyone who visited the auditorium tour on a rainy Valentine's day. If you didn't get a chance to join us, don't worry! We will have more opportunities to peer into the boarded up auditorium.
Feb 9, 2005	We have a new official mailing address. See our Contact Us page.
Feb 7, 2005	A map showing the location of the auditorium and a description of the bus routes and parking areas has been added to our new map page
Feb 5, 2005	You can now submit your stories and memories about the auditorium on our web site.
Feb 1, 2005	We've added video of Julia Caswell Daitch's moving speech about why the auditorium is so important. This was taken at the Town Meeting back in October 2004, and can be accessed via the Pictures and Video page.

Old Blair Auditorium Project, Inc. info@oldblairauditorium.org +1 888 OLD-BLAIR