ABOVE: Architect Scott Pryor speaks to the Chesterfield Economic Development Authority.
The Chesterfield Economic Development Authority received an update on the Chesterfield Center for the Arts last week.
Project director, Mike Laing of ECI Development Services of Richmond, and project architect, Scott Pryor, of DLR Group of Washington, D.C., spoke before the EDA board at its Oct. 18 meeting.
Laing said a construction start date is planned for the spring with a completion date tentatively set for the fall of 2020.
Pryor presented renderings of the 352-seat arts center to the board, and called it “the last piece of the puzzle of this [Chester Village] neighborhood.”
A 15-to-20-person orchestra pit is currently included in the design, Pryor said. Laing added that a $300,000 orchestra shell is not currently included, but could be added later as funds allow. An orchestra shell is a curved, hard surface designed to reflect sound toward an audience.
“We’re rounding into shape very well,” Laing said. “It’s shaping up to be a terrific facility.”
He compared the Chesterfield arts center to others in the region, and said that it would be similar in size to one in Glen Allen. “We have more flexibility than they do,” he said, referring to the types of events the facilities could host.
“It’s a fun project,” said Pryor, noting that the drawings will continue to be tweaked as time goes on.
