Of all the compliments Susan Raines and Diana Asher have heard about the newly completed east entrance and fine arts plaza to the Bowlus Center, the one that cheers them most is how well the new addition fits the 54-year-old structure.
“What I’m hearing constantly is how it looks like it’s always been a part of the building,” said Raines, outgoing Bowlus executive director. “It really brings the building into the present, but it also looks like it’s been there all along.”
Raines and Asher spoke about the grand opening celebration for the most radical change to the Bowlus since it was built in 1964, planned for Friday evening from 5:30 to 8.
The celebration will bring together the Friends of the Bowlus, which funded most of the $1.3 million project, as well as the Bowlus Commission and the USD 257 Board of Education, which doubles as the Bowlus Board of Trustees. They’ll be joined for the ribbon-cutting with representatives of the Sunderland Foundation, which contributed $200,000.
The 5:30 p.m. ribbon-cutting will be followed by an outdoor concert featuring local performers Josie Plumlee, Haley Carlin and Maggie Wilson, followed by the main event, a 90-minute show by the celebrated folk/Americana band Bettman & Halpin, a husband-and-wife duo who performed in 2015 in the Creitz Recital Hall.
“It was one of the best-reviewed performances we’ve had,” Raines said.
Bleachers will be set up for the outdoor entertainment; some may prefer to bring lawn chairs.
All the while, the new east entrance and other changes to the building will be open for tours, to give visitors a better grasp of the new layout.
“We hope people come and take advantage of this opportunity to get a feel for the new entrance,” Raines said, noting the days of asking folks to enter through the alley doors are no longer.
THE GLEAMING east entrance, with its full-length glass walls, a circular drive for pickup and drop-off and added parking for disabled patrons, is only part of the new additions.
A handicap-accessible elevator provides access to nearly all of the building, including offices and the auditorium.
“The only places the elevators don’t reach are the Creitz Recital Hall and the kitchen,” Raines said. (Those are still accessible with a chairlift.)
The new features include a loading dock at the southeast corner of the building, replacing the alley loading area, making it much easier and safer to load and unload equipment.
“The loading dock may be my favorite part,” Raines said.
Other new elements include an indoor-outdoor storage area, a room to store pianos and other instruments and an office for the Friends of the Bowlus.
