Rain Dampens Footing for Center’s Opening

This week’s rain threatened to put a damper on the gala opening night Monday of the Orange County Performing Arts Center. Earlier in the week, huge tents were set up in the Center area for opening-night parties.

More than 50,000 square feet of an artificial turf-like carpet was used to cover mud and dirt at the site of the tents, which is across from the Center on the corner of Town Center Drive and Avenue of the Arts.

Then it rained. Late Thursday, Center officials were still consulting soil specialists to determine whether to pull up the carpet and chemically treat the area with a quick-drying solution or to put down gravel and plywood on the muddy site to provide dry ground.