In Old Town Newhall?
Commentary By DAVID IAN STEARS,
Founder And Producing Director Of The Santa Clarita Repertory Theatre.
Old Town Newhall Gazette, September, 1997.
The City of Santa Clarita should be congratulated for its efforts to revitalize downtown Newhall -- and so should the members of the community who contributed countless hours to the planning and review process.
There are plans for traffic patterns and parking, new facades on buildings, architectural standards and a wonderful new clock tower at the center of Downtown.
These are excellent plans, but as the dust begins to clear, people will start to realize that it will take more to revitalize downtown Newhall -- more than these plans, and more than the city pumping money into the area. The redevelopment district wasn't created to be a cash cow.
What is going to revitalize Newhall are the people, property owners, businesses and organizations working together to bring life back to the downtown area. It's not going to be the city that opens shops and retail stores and improves the storefronts. It's not going to be the City that creates the businesses that bring people into the area. It's not going to be the City that comes into downtown Newhall and spends its money. That's not what the plans were created to do.
So what will revitalize the area?
Well, what does downtown Newhall have that we don't have anywhere else in our valley? The Santa Clarita Valley currently has a mall, a place for car sales, and (soon) four movie complexes. The industrial center does very well in production and manufacturing, and the area near City Hall will remain prime office space. We certainly have plenty strip mall centers.
What does Newhall have more of than any other place in the valley? History! I'm not talking about old buildings and stories of past residents. There is something deeper. Newhall was the meeting place for the community for years. With an old train station, the courthouse, a hotel and dance hall, Newhall was a destination, a place where people came to and gathered.
What else is our valley missing? We have dozens of parks, baseball fields and basketball courts.
What our valley sorely lacks is a place for the arts.
There has been some talk about creating an arts district in downtown Newhall. A few questions come to mind: What makes a district? What, specifically, is an arts district? And why should we have one in downtown Newhall?
A district is made up of many like businesses centralizing in one area, usually for mutual benefit. By locating close to each other, similar businesses can attract a larger customer base for potential sales. Often, "support" businesses open in the area, building on the momentum.
Many business-friendly communities have building codes or zoning opportunities that help foster these districts -- districts like the garment and theater districts in New York or the jewelry district in Los Angeles. The strongest districts emerge from cooperation among businesses in the community -- not from being dictated by a local government.
An arts district or theatre district is simply a number of arts groups or businesses concentrated in a central location. When this happens, people know where to go to see a play or visit an art gallery or museum. Marketing is easier and cheaper because businesses can pool their resources. City Hall can participate in a district by easing the permit process for art galleries and performance venues.
Why an arts district in downtown Newhall?
It has been proven time and time again that the arts can and do play a significant role in many redevelopment areas around the country. How? The arts have the potential to attract a night life -- creating a new customer base for other businesses. Theatre performances, concerts and art gallery openings bring people back into the area after the 9-to-5 crowd has left.
Usually, after the arts have moved into a community, other support businesses move in. Cafes and restaurants, coffee shops, small clubs, book stores and art galleries open and stay open because there are people in the area.
Why are the arts attracted to redevelopment areas? Because the low rents in these areas are usually all the arts organizations can afford.
It was wise for the the participants in the City's revitalization planning process -- the "Freedman meetings" -- to seize upon the history of Newhall and its architectural characteristics. We must continue to highlight the significance of the history of the area.
But it can be the arts that will truly revitalize downtown Newhall and make it the destination it once was. And it will be the property owners, business owners and arts organizations that must work together to make it happen. It can be the crowning jewel of all the City's redevelopment planning.
So whether it's Cowboy poetry or modern stanzas, classic plays or original works, old western crafts or new paintings and sculptures by talented young artists, Country-Western music or some cool jazz wafting through the air from a sidewalk cafe ... dream of it, and look for it in downtown Newhall.
A gathering place ... the way Old Newhall used to be.
to return to Old Town Newhall, USA