Focus on the Facts: Southwest Museum Posted by: "Nicole Possert" aguild@pacbell.net posserts Wed Jul 11, 2007 12:08 pm (PST) Almost daily, there are interesting news articles that provide relevant facts, tidbits of comparative knowledge and insight that continue to help all of us understand and frame the issues relating to the future of the Southwest Museum. Here's a sampling... Today: LA Times architecture story, "The new takes the old under its wing" reviews a new $35 million museum addition to the Akron Art Museum, housed in an historic 1899 Renaissance Revival structure (formerly a post office). The 63,000 sq feet of new space, designed by Himmelblau, shows that one can get a lot of museum exhibition space for that amount of money by an internationally recognized architecture firm. Note: the Coalition's conceptual Alternative Plan to rehabilitate the historic building for museum display and a modest expansion of new exhibition space would total just over 22,000 sq feet and designed as an appropriate addition to the historic structures. Last week: 1) The 10 acres of land in Hollywood that holds the icons of Yamashiros and the Magic Castle is highly sought after and could fetch a sale of $70 million -- $7million an acre and billed as "a mostly undeveloped site with panoramic views".... sound familiar? The Autry controls over 12 acres of land, making them the owners of one of the largest parcels of similar land in Northeast Los Angeles. http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-yamashiro6jul06,0,5361376.story?coll=la-home-business 2) The LATimes reported that the County spent $25 million to renovate the Hollywood Bowl -- that fairly modest outdoor structure. That makes Autry's $23 million estimate for the rehabilitation of the Southwest Museum in order to be used as a museum displaying the Southwest Collection seem like a very prudent investment in the City's first museum. Two weeks ago: The Skirball Cultural Center, launched it's new permanent exhibit of Noah's Arc. This is just one of their exhibit spaces and is 8,000 square feet of dedicated space for an "interactive exhibit combining elements of a childrens museum, art gallery and cultural center." It cost $5 million and 5 years to prepare. 3,200 sq feet of space for the display of the Southwest Museum Collection is the total amount of space Autry may commit to as part of their un-funded future re-use proposal at the Southwest Museum. Nicole Possert

Focus on the Facts: Southwest Museum Posted by: "Judith Dancoff" jdancova@sbcglobal.net Thu Jul 12, 2007 9:18 am (PST) All great examples of the possible, Nicole. I do not think, however, that the Autry is rejecting such visions for the Southwest for money reasons, even though they may say they are. The Autry's position as a major museum is unique: while possessing an important site, the museum's collection is trivial if not nonexistent. Consider the current exhibits at the Autry: a major show on Gene Autry, and a second one on pistols. Can you imagine the Getty doing a show on J. Paul Getty and then a second one on oil wells? Now, however, with the Southwest merger, they see a golden opportunity to associate Autry's name with a collection of international stature; all that is required is to erase the collection's true history and home. A second motivation for downplaying the Southwest site is no doubt the Autry's fear and misperception of the Northeast. I don't know how one fights these motivations without a concerted and expensive pr campaign. Memories are short. If the Autry gets their way, Lummis and the Southwest will be reduced to a few photographs on the wall of their new Griffith Park site. --Judith Dancoff

Re: Focus on the Facts: Southwest Museum Posted by: "Scott Rubel" scott@invitesite.com scottford1124 Thu Jul 12, 2007 11:33 am (PST) Judith: I believe you are correct about what motivates the Autry. I don't know what motivates everyone else who buys into the fatalism. Those who object to the disruption of the improvements to the Arroyo campus which are needed for the Autry to achieve its stated goals for the site, they do not get that all that will take place anyway if Autry dumps it...just for a different reason. I'd rather see all the development to build a museum instead of a casino. Don't miss the celebration of the centennial of Autry's birth. You have from now until January 13th! Oh, and don't miss the celebration of the Centennial of the Southwest Museum. It lasts, um, four hours on a Sunday in October, I think. I can't find it on their web site. Has anyone heard from Villaraigosalinas about keeping his promise to us? I haven't --Scott Rubel

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