SIMI VALLEY : Arts Center Design Payment Plan OKd

The Simi Valley City Council has agreed to pay a Valencia consulting firm up to $317,000 for structural studies and design work aimed at turning the historic Old Methodist Church into a cultural arts center.

Under a schedule proposed by the city, the 67-year-old neoclassical building at 3050 Los Angeles Ave. could be reopened in the fall of 1994 as a community theater with 250 to 325 seats. The building, now surrounded by a security fence, would also house a conference room and exhibit space.

In a 4-1 vote on Feb. 22, the council hired Combs and Miguel Architecture to design an arts center within the 15,000-square-foot former church building. The consultant will also determine what structural improvements are needed so that building will meet modern building codes.

Councilwoman Sandi Webb cast the opposing vote. She has said she objects to the use of tax dollars for the ambitious arts project.

City officials have estimated that reconstruction work will cost between $1.8 million and $2.7 million.

The gray building was used first as a church, then a mortuary, and it later served as a synagogue. A businessman bought the building in 1986, hoping to restore it as a banquet hall. That owner ran short of money, however, and sold it to the city in 1991 for $821,000.

Cultural arts supporters say Simi Valley, with a population of more than 100,000, is sorely lacking in performing arts space. Several groups now present plays in a 98-seat theater that formerly was a county courtroom.