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HomeMy WebLinkAboutSS2 - Library Lecture Hall Proposal - CorrespondenceR--ruN. N EW PORT BEACH FILM F E S T I V A L January 30, 2019 Mayor Diane Dixon and City Council Members City of Newport Beach 100 Civic Center Drive Newport Beach, CA 92660 SUBJECT: Support for Newport Beach Public Library Lecture Hall Dear Mayor Dixon and Members of the Newport Beach City Council: Received After Agenda Printed March 12, 2019 Item No. SS2 The Newport Beach Film Festival voices its support for the proposed Newport Beach Public Library Lecture Hall. Since its inception, the Newport Beach Film Festival has hosted film and educational events in the Newport Beach Public Library Community Room, as part of the Festival's free filmmaking seminar series Vision and Craft: The Art of Filmmaking. The Festival has also partnered with the Newport Beach Public Library Foundation on public programs. The Festival recognizes the significance of providing enriching, accessible public programs and educational opportunities to citizens of Newport Beach and beyond. The Lecture Hall represents an important investment in the City's cultural, educational and civic infrastructure, one that is essential to increasing community engagement, connectivity, programmatic offerings by the City of Newport Beach, arts organizations, community groups and non-profit organizations. A shortage of public community spaces for film and public programs currently exists. The new Lecture Hall would allow the Newport Beach Film Festival to expand its free Community Cinema program and open doors to new cinematic experiences for the public. A new Lecture Hall, with an increased seating capacity and communal space, would not only bring in new and expanded programming, audiences, outreach opportunities and potential underwriters, but would build on the Library's mission and serve as an interactive epicentre for knowledge, culture, conversation and media. With the emergence of new technologies upon us, a state-of-the-art Lecture Hall with modern audio and visual capabilities, one that can properly accommodate multimedia presentations with space for a film projection room and for video equipment needed to capture presentations for live streaming and podcasting, is vital to the Library's future as a 21St century learning institution and community gathering space. From cinema to performing arts to lectures to book signings, the proposed Lecture Hall would greatly enhance the lives of our citizens and increase Newport Beach's visibility as a destination for innovative programming, memorable artistic experiences and a place to discover new ideas, technologies and perspectives. Sincerely, Gregg Schwenk CEO / Executive Director Newport Beach Film Festival Gregg. Schwenk@NewportBeachFilmFest.com Leslie Feibleman Director of Special Programs + Community Cinema Newport Beach Film Festival Leslie.Feibleman@NewportBeachFilmFest.com Received After Agenda Printed March 12, 2019 Item No. SS2 TO: Newport Beach City Council FROM: Amy Hunt, President of the Friends of the NB .Library RE: Proposed Library Lecture Hall On behalf of the Friends of the Library, I would like the City Council to know that we are in agreement with the Board of Library Trustees and the Library Foundation regarding the building of a new Lecture Hall at Central Library. The Friends fund a number of programs which are currently held in the Friends Room and having a larger and more adaptable venue in which to hold these programs would be beneficial to attendees. With the increased seating; we'd be able to accommodate more people and with the proposed layout, make it a more enjoyable experience for all. Being able to accommodate more people, we'd have more people coming to the library which hopefully means we'd have more people becoming aware of, and shopping in, our bookstore. More sales at our bookstore means more financial support we can give to the Library and that's a win-win situation for all. Thanks for your support. Received After Agenda Printed March 12, 2019 Item No. SS2 Lizanne Witte 31541 Tablerock Drive Laguna Beach, California 92651 29 January 2019 To: The Newport Beach City Council Re: Proposed Lecture Hall for the NB Public Library Dear Mayor Dixon and Members of the City Council: I am writing to encourage your support of the proposed lecture hall to be built on the Newport Beach Public Library campus. The Library has become the cultural, educational and informational heart of Newport Beach but we need a new facility to better serve our audiences and eager supporters. I was involved with the opening of the Library building 25 years ago and have been volunteering with the Library Foundation in one capacity or another ever since. I have watched the Library Foundation's programming grow and bring remarkable people to Newport Beach. The Foundation has expanded its programming due to popular demand. One thing is sure - we have outgrown the size of the Friends Room and the technology we rely upon. The Witte Series, Library Live, Medicine in Our Backyard, It's Your Money Financial Workshops and other programs are in desperate need of a legitimate lecture hall - not a community room. Now that the Art Museum has closed, we are the most important and established institution in town. We could bring fresh energy to the Library campus with expanded educational programming and a more enjoyable experience all around. The time has come for a new, state-of-the-art facility that will enhance the cultural learning experience for all programming taking place at the Library. The Vision for the New Lecture Hall.. • Raked seating for better sightlines • Increased capacity will give us the flexibility to sell more seats and therefore be able to afford distinguished speakers our audience requests. • State-of-the-art AV screen. Most speakers now show visuals, a Powerpoint, photographs, film clips, etc.. We are currently functionally handicapped with the old school equipment. Programming will be dramatically enhanced if we had new technology. • State-of-the-art sound system. Unfortunately our sound system is inferior. People regularly complain. We are making do. • State-of-the-art lighting - essential. • A facility we can open and close separately, at times, from the Library itself. As you know, this dream of a lecture hall has been a goal of many involved with the Library for years now. The lecture hall would serve everyone - all ages and all walks of life - for decades ahead. It would be a gift to the citizens of Newport Beach. Just imagine how much this would change the town. Thanks for your consideration... Lizanne Witte Received After Agenda Printed March 12, 2019 Item No. SS2 1531 Santa Barbara Drive Newport Beach, CA 92660 March 12, 2019 All City Council Members Newport Beach City Council City Hall 100 Civic Center Drive Newport Beach, CA 92660 RE: Discussion in Consideration of a Lecture Hall addition to the Public Library. Dear Council Member, am writing to you as a strong proponent of a new lecture hall for the city of Newport Beach. As the current chairperson of the successful and highly esteemed WITTE LECTURE SERIES, now in its 22nd season, I have many reasons for supporting such a fine addition to our community. THE WITTE LECTURE SERIES is unique. For over 22 years, the series has offered the wider Newport Beach Community the opportunity to hear, interact with and talk to nationally recognized and award winning speakers in an intimate setting. The series is curated by a diligent volunteer committee who keep their collective finger on the national pulse when seeking speakers. The topics selected are timely, diverse and important, covering the areas of science, politics, technology, the arts, history and current events. The speakers are nationally recognized, published, and award-winning experts in their fields. We have had multiple Pulitzer Prize Winners, National Book Award winners, Presidential Scholars and award winning visual artists. Our series is unique in its intimate setting where our guests get to discuss the provocative and often aspirational lectures and converse with fellow citizens at our CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION post -lecture light suppers. The series also enjoys support from some of our community's most recognized businesses. Hi -Time Wine Cellars and the Fashion Island Hotel and KPCC have been steadfast supporters. Finally, the greatest tribute paid to the WITTE LECTURE SERIES is the support of our steadfast, generous and longtime supporters. With their help, we will continue to offer this series and supper to the wider community at affordable ticket prices. Being able to offer it to a larger audience in a well designed venue would be the cherry on top! It would be a gift to our community to see this series grown, expanded and endowed. Presently, we utilize the one space at the NBPL that will accommodate our audience. Currently, we offer each lecture for two consecutive sessions - Friday evenings and Saturday afternoons - selling tickets for 220 seats, the maximum capacity of the Friends of the Library multipurpose room. Holding lectures in that venue requires a huge amount of work and a mediocre setting: Lecture Room Set Up - for the Friday Lectures, the library must close an hour early, depriving patrons of access - a "ticket booth" has to be set up - a podium and screen have to be organized - all 220 chairs must be set up and then removed - an AV service has to be hired and a sound system has to be set up and then removed for each lecture - supplemental yet inferior devices for hearing impaired guests have to be engaged Disadvantges - the limited seating capacity of the room does not allow for selling tickets at prices that actually pay for our quality speakers. Without our sponsors, these prestigious lectures would not take place - set up requires hours of labor and time - there is no stage in the room - acoustics and sound system yield poor delivery, often difficult to hear - documenting the lectures with video and audio recording requires the set up of additional costly equipment. The product, having been poorly illuminated and broadcast, is often inferior. These important but inferior recordings are then broadcast on the Foundation website. - having two lectures to accommodate our interested patrons is twice the labor and incurs additional cost - site lines are inferior and often completely obstructed as the floor of the room is level - there is no way to illuminate the speaker - room lighting to highlight the speaker leaves the simultaneous screen projections overexposed - room temperature for the comfort of the speaker and the audience is difficult to control - exiting from the room is all done through one doorway which slows departures - there is no "green room" for our speakers, so they are conveyed through offices and exterior settings to get to the podium. - without a stage, performance artists are out of the question - we have no special way to accommodate patrons with wheelchairs, or diminished visual acuity or diminished hearing It is time for Newport Beach to rise to the level of the quality, state -of -the art lecture venue that the community deserves. This new lecture hall could become a terrific community asset as well. In addition to the WITTE LECTURE SERIES, the opportunities for the community to use this space throughout the year for presentations, concerts, lectures and meetings are without limit. The venue could be both a revenue generator and a community gathering space. In short, Newport Beach, a community that takes pride in its public spaces, civic institutions, fine schools, and beautiful beaches deserves the addition of a venue of distinction for our guest speakers and community alike. sincerely hope that you will consider the importance of creating this addition to our magnificent community library campus. Sincerely, Janet S. Hadley Chair, THE WITTE LECTURE COMMITTEE Board Member, Newport Beach Public Library Foundation Received After Agenda Printed March 12, 2019 Item No. SS2 �� Th a Q�mber BEACH= January 29, 2019 Mayor Diane Dixon & City Council Members City of Newport Beach 100 Civic Center Drive Newport Beach, CA 92660 Re: Proposed Main Library Lecture Hall Addition Dear Mayor Dixon & City Council Members: At the meeting of the Newport Beach Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors on January 28, 2019, the Board heard a presentation by Board of Library Trustees member, Jill Johnson -Tucker, with regard to the proposed Lecture Hall addition to the main library campus at 1000 Avocado, Newport Beach. The Board listened with interest to the details regarding the project, asked numerous questions and made several recommendations with regard to the design, functionality and use of the addition. At the conclusion of the presentation, the Board voted unanimously to request that the City Council: 1. Give full consideration to the proposal developed by the Board of Library Trustees at the earliest possible time; 2. That the Council should request further studies be done to assess the feasibility of the project and the required level of funding necessary for completion; 3. Authorize staff to prepare a "next steps" plan to move the project forward. Thank you for your consideration. Sincerely Steven Rosansky ' President/CEO Newport Beach Chamber Commerce CONNECTION. EDUCATION. COMMUNITY. ADVOCACY. 4343 Von Karman Avenue, Suite 150-W, Newport Beach, California 92660 • Ph: (949, 729-4400 • Fax: (19491729-4417 - �1%;w,rr.nevYvporti each.com