‘Eyebrows’ Would Go Highbrow Under City Arts Panel Proposal

Artwork and computer classrooms could replace the graffiti and broken windows that have long marred the old city hall building on Hillcrest Drive, under a proposal being studied by the Thousand Oaks Arts Commission.

With the National Park Service moving into one building, the commission is pushing for a combination cultural arts center and community educational facility in the other.

“The rewards to the community would be astronomical,” said arts commissioner Rod Davis, a commercial real estate broker and an artist. “It would be an opportunity to experience culture and art at its highest level, which at this point is not available here.”

City Council members, although supporting the concept, say such a museum might work better near the Civic Arts Plaza, the city’s premier performing arts venue. What’s more, they say the city needs the revenue from commercially renting the Hillcrest Drive building.

“I have concerns about getting that building leased,” said Mayor Mike Markey, questioning how long it would take for the arts group to secure private and nonprofit funding for the museum. “I don’t want it to stand empty for very long.”

The buildings, known as “eyebrows on the hill,” have been vacant since 1988 when asbestos removal forced the city government into new quarters.

Arts commissioners promoting the project say the architectural beauty of the two 25-year-old buildings and their commanding view of the Conejo Valley make the 62-acre hillside site ideal for the center.

Conceptual plans call for a gallery to house touring international and domestic art exhibits and an outdoor amphitheater. There would also be a learning center offering access to computers, job training for senior citizens and classes in the arts, business and communications. A permanent art collection would be developed over time.

The site could also house the collection from the Conejo Valley Art Museum, which shut its doors in 1994 and has warehoused its artwork ever since.

Arts center supporters want to move into the larger, northern building. The other building has been leased by the National Park Service and will serve as headquarters for the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area as of April 1. The city is spending $1.86 million to renovate the building.

The arts commission, an 11-member advisory panel appointed by the City Council to promote cultural arts, approved the idea in concept last month and directed a committee, headed by Davis, to prepare a preliminary proposal addressing facility and budgetary needs, as well as funding sources.

Davis said his goal is to write a “succinct, sophisticated” proposal that would persuade the commission to give the project final approval and send it on to the City Council, which would decide whether to pursue the plan further.

With start-up costs estimated at less than $1 million, the project could be funded by private donations and state and federal money, Davis said. He predicts the project’s arts and educational value make it likely to win grants.

Private individuals and corporations have contacted him to offer financial help, and an architect and a building contractor have offered their services pro bono. Another group has donated computers.

The fledgling art museum itself could generate income through a refreshment stand, bookstore or gift shop, Davis said.

Councilwoman Judy Lazar lauded Davis for his enthusiasm, but she wants to see a detailed proposal. She, like Markey and Mayor Pro Tem Linda Parks, would like to consider placing the project near the Civic Arts Plaza.

It makes sense in light of the recent council decision to allow the Ventura County Discovery Center, a children’s museum, to build on vacant land east of the Civic Arts Plaza, Lazar said. All of those activities would be family oriented, she said.

Lazar, Markey and Parks further agreed the Hillcrest property is a city asset that should generate as much revenue as possible, either through leasing or being sold.

The National Park Service will pay $412,000 a year to rent the 20,000-square-foot southern building. The northern building is 36,000 square feet. As its interior was completely gutted to remove asbestos, the building needs new utilities, plumbing and walls.

Parks said that she supports the idea of creating more exhibit space for art shows.

“I know there’s more art than places to put it,” she said.

Indeed, the Conejo Valley Art Museum has no place to show its collection of paintings and sculpture.

Maria Dessornes, president of the museum’s board of directors, who conducts museum business out of her home, said she supports the arts commission’s idea.

“What we need is a place to exhibit,” Dessornes said. “I’ve always thought it [the Hillcrest Drive property] would be a good place for the visual arts to be displayed.”

Councilwoman Elois Zeanah liked the idea of an arts facility on the Hillcrest property.

“It has magnificent floor to ceiling windows,” Zeanah said. “If we’re going to have an art museum, it’s time to find a place for it.” She added that it would be a good neighbor for the National Park Service.

Thinking along those lines, Lorenza Fong, in charge of educational programs for the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, said an arts and educational center next door would complement park service operations.

“Children could learn about art and park resources. We might be able to do joint projects and have children create art from the Santa Monica Mountains,” Fong said.

Another proponent of an arts facility under the old hilltop eyebrows is William Maple, a Thousand Oaks resident who successfully fought a two-year battle to have the Hillcrest complex designated as a local landmark.

“I think it’s a great choice. As long as the building is empty, there’s always the threat of it being knocked down and used for development,” Maple said, explaining that its special designation cannot stop the City Council from razing the complex.

Davis and the committee expect to complete their report detailing the project by the end of March.