Willamette and the City of Salem Share a Growing Vision

by Janis Nichols

artnership in this endeavor is key. The University’s current space and facilities configuration must be extended and improved. Boxed in on three sides, the Willamette campus must look primarily to the west for future development — a titillating conclusion that has focused the attention of both the University and the capital city.

A Shared Vision

If timing is indeed everything, a number of key factors are now in place to allow development decisions that will both expand the campus footprint and aid the city with its own long-term revitalization plans. The vision shared by Willamette and Salem would link the campus to downtown with pedestrian walkways and cultural amenities. Plans are taking shape, one block at a time. But the dream of a new University performing arts center in the downtown core is the basis for all the buzz.

“Willamette needs a new state-of-the-art auditorium that will seat 1,000 guests and meet growing program demands for studio and recital space, a dance space and other performance space,” says Pelton. “A facility of the caliber we envision will focus on meeting our academic needs, but will also enrich our community by providing a variety of cultural, entertainment and educational opportunities in the form of concerts, lectures, recitals and other performances.”

But building a new academic facility in downtown Salem only hints at the vision the president and others have in mind, a vision that has the potential to rejuvenate the look and feel of downtown Salem. “Imagine a cultural district defined by purpose,” Pelton continues, describing a revitalized Salem that boasts the new Salem Conference Center and Phoenix Grand Hotel, the remodeled Elsinore Theatre, attractive pedestrian walkways and green spaces, and a collection of restaurants, coffee shops, bookstores, art galleries and boutiques. “Imagine at the very core of all that energy the Hallie Ford Museum of Art and a new performing arts center.”

Taylor joins Pelton with equal enthusiasm. “We struggle with Salem’s image as a government town. We are that and more,” she says. “It’s the ‘more’ we must nurture, especially in the arts and cultural venue — the most exciting but most fragile aspect of any city.”

Both Pelton and Taylor cite the importance of collaborative thinking and partnership between the city and University leaders. “The University brings a national and international sensibility to the region through its students and diverse programming,” Taylor says, “and the vitality of the downtown core is increased as Willamette expands to the west.”

With hundreds of students, faculty and staff living and working in and around the downtown area, Willamette has a strong interest in Salem’s downtown business district remaining economically healthy, a vibrant and exciting place to live, work and recreate. The vitality of Salem’s downtown and the availability of cultural opportunities, or lack thereof, could be a factor in an applicant’s decision to come to Willamette as a student or member of the faculty.

Western Exposure

“Up until now, Willamette’s western approach has had its back to the rest of the city,” Taylor explains. “Willamette’s proposed future growth, including its vision for a new performing arts center, will open our front doors to each other. The city will do whatever it can to accommodate the creation of a performing arts center in downtown Salem. Revitalization is mutually beneficial.”

Culture-savvy Salem residents, including John Olbrantz, the Hallie Ford Museum of Art director, and Mary Lou Zeek, a downtown gallery owner, have been rocking on their heels waiting for others to grasp the possibilities that will arise from a discussion of revitalization. They, too, are passionate about Salem’s future.

“When the Hallie Ford Museum of Art opened in 1998, it was the University’s western outpost,” says Olbrantz, “a tenuous bridge between downtown and the University.” Today the museum offers world-class exhibits that draw more than 30,000 visitors a year from both ends of the I-5 corridor.

“The Hallie Ford Museum is both the University’s and the city’s museum, a catalyst for revitalizing downtown Salem,” Olbrantz explains. “Vital cities like Portland and Seattle have the right blend of downtown housing, restaurants and visual and performing arts. Salem is on the threshold of creating that environment, and in 10 years,” he predicts, “Salem will be a destination city. The University is a willing partner in that vision.”

Tradition Embracing Trends

University and city leaders are keenly aware of the role the arts play in neighborhood revitalization. Jonathan Carder, a University trustee and chair of the board’s facilities committee, speaks with conviction about this trend. “The creative class is driving all sectors of our economy, from technology to entertainment,” he explains. “Creative people are choosing cities that honor diversity and have open, liberal attitudes that embrace and appreciate the fine and performing arts.”

Carder believes Portland continued to thrive during the 2000–04 recession in part because it welcomed cultural and artistic diversity. He envisions such a future for Salem. “The renaissance of Salem will reap strong benefits for the entire Willamette University community. You cannot overstate the importance of a sense of place. Having a first-class performing arts center that brings special events and outstanding performers and lecturers to campus adds to the luster of the University and adds intellectual and cultural depth to Salem. Such a center would serve as a magnet to draw lively people with lively minds. Smith Auditorium is obsolete. Its replacement, built downtown, would be a wonderful resource for both the University and the city.”

“What the city and the University are committed to creating is not some hybrid invention,” says Pelton. “What we are talking about exists throughout the country in those places that understand and support what makes a city vital and exciting. Great cities require planning. They require a long-term commitment to key elements like pedestrian walkways, public transportation, open spaces, distinct architecture, mixed housing, a riverfront, and interesting shops, galleries and restaurants. Salem already has many of these elements.”

Mapping Tomorrow Today

Carder echoes those who say Willamette University must make strategic choices now. “Trustees are very supportive of the need to grow the University even if we cannot anticipate all future needs,” he says. “An organization either grows or decays. We can’t stand still. We must go forward with strategic acquisitions even though we don’t know how every block will be used. In recent years, we have watched the school district and Salem Hospital gobble up available land on our eastern and southern borders. We can’t afford to wait and see.”

According to City Councilman Jim Randall, the city is open to discussions about zoning changes, vacating streets and acquiring and consolidating irregular pieces of property that result from road construction. “‘No’ is not our default button,” says Randall. “The city council wants to be seen as proactive and open for business. President Pelton and Mayor Taylor should both be given credit for their roles in improving the climate for change and partnership. Both the city and the University have offered vision and leadership.”

Looking at maps of the downtown Salem core, Jim Bauer, vice president for administrative services, sees how the University and the city might work together. Willamette will ask the city to vacate a number of streets to include all city-owned property west of Winter, south of State, east of Church and Pringle Parkway. “Once acquired, these properties will allow the University to create an integrated space to include the Hallie Ford Museum of Art, the Atkinson Graduate School of Management, the College of Law, the School of Education and the Methodist church,” Bauer explains. “It will become one contiguous footprint.”

The University is also in discussions with Qwest, adjacent to the museum. “We have no desire to purchase the building,” Bauer says, “but we would like to determine what opportunities exist to share space and parking.”

It takes vision to connect the dots with Willamette’s future in mind. The University has purchased the Pacific Building on the corner of State and High streets adjoining the historic Elsinore Theatre, recently renovated for $3.5 million. Bauer says, “We purchased the building before we started envisioning a new Willamette University performing arts center in the downtown core, and we will continue to evaluate its future use.”

In 2003 the University purchased the YWCA at the corner of State and Winter streets, directly across from the newly expanding art building. Willamette will lease the building to the YWCA until 2006, when the agreement will be reevaluated.

On the same corner is the Carnegie Building, once Salem’s first public library. A $600,000 challenge grant from Meyer Memorial Trust will help renovate the structure, built in 1912. The refurbished building will be home to four cocurricular College of Law programs. The University needs to raise an additional $1.4 million in the next two years to secure the challenge grant. Once renovated, the facility will be named the Oregon Civic Justice Center.

Other strategic acquisitions include the Legal Arts Building and DeLynn’s Cleaners on Church Street, as well as the parking lot directly behind the Methodist church. “These three properties,” Bauer explains, “will eventually become the new grand entrance to the Willamette University campus.”

All Aboard

The vision for a lively cultural district to join the Willamette campus with a rejuvenated downtown Salem is a bold endeavor by any standard. To make the dream a reality will require the complete commitment of all involved. Ongoing conversations about a new performing arts center tend to bring out the optimist in everyone.

“The board plays a strong role in developing a vision for the University,” Carder explains. “We are a sounding board and a policy-making board, but we also have a responsibility to carry the message. The president can’t be the only one out there raising money and asking people to get involved and make a long-term commitment. We must be fully engaged in the vision.”

That said, President Pelton is, indeed, the lead enthusiast. No one is more aware of the opportunities such a facility could provide. “The concept of academic excellence takes many shapes. We should have an excellent downtown, excellent cultural amenities and excellent neighborhood associations. If you believe that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, you will understand the connection between our classrooms and the greater Salem community. Academic excellence, fully embraced, will change an entire landscape.”