By Clarence Cromwell
So far, they're only testing the waters, but officials at Villa Montalvo want to undertake a $3 million improvement of the historic estate that would open the Carriage House Theatre year-round, ease parking and construct more guest cottages for artists.
Montalvo trustee Phil Boyce presented the plans Dec. 1 to city officials, and the Montalvo board of trustees started a drive to raise money for the improvements. But it hasn't yet applied for city approval needed to start the work.
The revamping would put about 100 more seats in the 300-seat Carriage House Theatre by adding another tier of chairs. Permanent seats may replace rows of folding chairs in the theater.
Officials also want to upgrade electrical wiring in the building and add new air conditioning, central heating, improved lighting above the audience, and better sound equipment, said Scott Sherwood, a member of Montalvo's board of trustees.
The heat and air conditioning would make the rustic building usable year-round, rather than six months a year, as it now is.
"It's fairly antiquated," Sherwood said. "Everything from the front to the back, from the bottom to the top, would need an overhaul."
Parking lot improvements are needed to provide enough spaces for the Carriage House Theatre, Sherwood said.
The Montalvo board also wants to add as many as 10 new cottages for its artists-in-residence program, which offers three-month stays to writers, painters and composers from around the world while they complete works of art. The five existing artist apartments on the estate are within shouting distance of the Garden Theatre, where concerts are performed. Two are close to a courtyard frequently booked for wedding parties and other events.
Montalvo Executive Director Elisbeth Challener said the popular program needs more cottages because it has to turn away 90 percent of the artists who apply for residencies.
In another project, officials want to add a lawn area to the Garden Theatre by terracing a slope adjacent to the existing seats, but the work wouldn't be included in the current $3 million fundraising drive.
Montalvo officials said they do not plan to add more concerts to their outdoors series or add permanent seats to the outdoor theater, as another newspaper previously reported.
"It [the Carriage House] gives you a different alternative for people attending a concert, with less formal arrangements and less expensive tickets," Sherwood said.
Villa Montalvo's board of trustees is currently trying to raise the money needed for the improvements. After first reaching into their own pockets, board members will solicit their friends and family members for contributions.
"If we can get good, strong support at that level, we can raise the $3 million," Sherwood said. Later, the board will ask area businesses and concert-goers to contribute money for the renovation.
Plans to renovate worry some of Montalvo's neighbors, although trustees insist the estate will strive to be a good neighbor.
Wolf-André Wanka, one of 35 parties that sued Villa Montalvo four years ago because of concert noise levels, said he's against any improvements that would bring more traffic, more people or more noise to the estate. He also claimed the Garden Theatre ignores a court order to keep concerts quieter than 65 decibels.
"We oppose any expansion that will negatively impact the neighborhood," Wanka said.
Challener said concert noise is monitored, and artists are asked to limit their volume. A representative of Villa Montalvo will meet with neighbors within the next month to explain their project and ease any fears over the proposed work, she said.
This article appeared in the Saratoga News, Wednesday, January 10, 1996.
©1996 Metro Publishing Inc. All rights reserved.