San Jose Civic Explained

San Jose Civic
Former Names:San Jose Municipal Auditorium
San Jose Civic Auditorium
City National Civic
Address:135 W San Carlos St
San Jose, CA 95113
Owner:City of San Jose
Capacity:3,036
Cost:$530,515
Architect:Binder & Curtis
Project Manager:Worley & Company
General Contractor:Thomas Construction
Main Contractors:Swenson Construction
Embedded:
Embed:yes
Mapframe:no
Ren Cost:$25 million
Renovation Date:2009-12
Ren Architect:ELS Architecture
Ren Contractor:Garden City Construction

The San Jose Civic (formerly known as the San Jose Civic Auditorium and City National Civic) is a former arena, currently operating as a theatre and concert venue, located in downtown San Jose, California. The venue is owned by the City of San Jose, is managed by Team San Jose[1] and is booked by Nederlander Concerts.[2] The auditorium seats 3,036 which can be expanded up to 3,326 in a general admission setting.[3]

History

The venue was created through a joint venture between the City of San Jose, Public Works Administration and local property owners Mr. and Mrs. T. S. Montgomery, who donated the property.[4] The building was designed by Binder & Curtis,[5] in the Spanish Colonial/California Mission Revival style.[6]

The venue's naming rights were given to City National Bank in December 2013,[7] with its original name being restored in May 2019.[8]

The west wing was a convention hall called "Parkside Hall". It opened on September 22, 1977, as the "San Jose Convention Center". It served as the city's main convention center until a new facility of the same name opened across the street in 1989.[9] The building was demolished in 2009.[10]

A $25 million renovation of the venue (approved in 2007) was begun in 2009. A state-of-the-art sound and video system was installed, the building's floor was refurbished, an exterior lighting system was activated, and the loading dock was upgraded. Key improvements planned included a top-line interior lighting system, seating upgrades to replace the decades-old plastic molded chairs, more restrooms, and a new concessions program.[11]

Naming history

Montgomery Theater

The "Montgomery Theater" is attached to the east side of the building. Seating 486, it is the primary home of CMT San Jose.[14]

Notable events

Many of the most popular entertainers and public figures have appeared at the venue creating memorable historic events since its opening in 1936. Barbra Streisand appeared there during her first concert tour in 1963. Bob Dylan and the Hawks played a famous show there on December 12, 1965, and Allen Ginsberg made a tape of it now held by the Stanford University Libraries. Earlier that year the Rolling Stones played a concert there that was attended by Ken Kesey and his Merry Pranksters who electrified a party afterward reportedly attended by Stones members. Richard Nixon made national headlines during an anti-war demonstration at the San Jose Civic.

It has presented major sporting events including boxing matches with champions such as Jack Dempsey and Joe Louis. The Civic hosted the final day of the GENESIS 3 Super Smash Bros. tournament in January 2016.[15] It was the venue for the trampoline events of the inaugural World Games I in 1981.

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Refurbished Civic Auditorium Requires New Management . Van Zandt . Jack . December 20, 2007 . San Jose Inside . . February 16, 2020. https://archive.today/20200216055319/http://www.sanjoseinside.com/2007/12/20/refurbished_civic_auditorium_requires_new_management/ . February 16, 2020.
  2. . Team San Jose and Nederlander Concerts Partner to Promote and Produce Events at the Historic Civic Auditorium . San Jose, California . San Jose Convention & Visitors Bureau . PR Web . February 13, 2009 . February 16, 2020. https://archive.today/20200216062640/http://www.prweb.com/releases/san_jose/civic_auditorium/prweb2045264.htm . February 16, 2020.
  3. Web site: San Jose Civic . . September 7, 2017 . Visit San Jose . February 16, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200216044850/https://www.sanjose.org/pdf/san-jose-civic . February 16, 2020.
  4. Radhakrishnan . Sachin . May 31, 2012 . The New Deal at Work: San Jose's Civic Auditorium . De Anza College . February 15, 2020. Scribd. subscription.
  5. Book: Dinkelspiel-Cerny, Susan . September 10, 2007 . An Architectural Guidebook to San Francisco and the Bay Area . https://books.google.com/books?id=FkVQx6MWa8MC&q=san%20jose%20civic%20auditorium%20history&pg=PA209 . . . 209 . 978-1586854324 . Santa Clara County.
  6. Book: Short . C.W.. Stanley-Brown . R. . May 1936 . Public Buildings: Architecture Under the Public Works Administration, 1933 to 1939 . Washington, D.C. . United States Government Printing Office . 0306802651 .
  7. Web site: San Jose's Civic gets new name with corporate sponsor . Druzin . Bryce . December 4, 2013 . Silicon Valley Business Journal . Advance Publications . February 16, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20140914005945/http://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/news/2013/12/04/san-jose-civic-renamed.html . September 14, 2014.
  8. Web site: San Jose Theaters Unveils New Name And Branding For Historic San Jose Civic . . May 15, 2019 . . February 16, 2020. https://archive.today/20200216070532/https://finance.yahoo.com/news/san-jose-theaters-unveils-name-140000566.html?guccounter=1 . February 16, 2020.
  9. Book: Historical Evaluation: Museum Place Mixed-Use Project. City of San Jose. April 14, 2016. June 12, 2017. PDF. https://web.archive.org/web/20180117012054/https://www.sanjoseca.gov/DocumentCenter/View/66138 . January 17, 2018.
  10. Web site: Renovations at San Jose Civic . Singh . Gary . May 5, 2010 . Metro Active . Metro Newspapers . February 16, 2020. https://archive.today/20200216063740/http://www.metroactive.com/features/columns/silicon-alleys_20100505.html . February 16, 2020.
  11. Web site: Historic San Jose Civic Auditorium makes modern-day debut . Kim . Elizabeth . September 23, 2011 . . . February 16, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20111004184950/https://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/print-edition/2011/09/23/historic-san-jose-civic-auditorium.html . October 4, 2011.
  12. Web site: A new name for San Jose's Civic Auditorium . Pizarro . Sal . December 3, 2013 . . . February 16, 2020. https://archive.today/20200216055822/https://www.eastbaytimes.com/2013/12/03/pizarro-a-new-name-for-san-joses-civic-auditorium/ . February 16, 2020.
  13. . San Jose Theaters Unveils New Name And Branding For Historic San Jose Civic . San Jose, California . Visit San Jose . PR Newswire . May 15, 2019 . February 16, 2020. https://archive.today/20200216070120/https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/san-jose-theaters-unveils-new-name-and-branding-for-historic-san-jose-civic-300850284.html . February 16, 2020.
  14. Web site: How Children's Musical Theater built a cast of thousands . Pizarro . Sal . March 30, 2018 . . Digital First Media . February 16, 2020. https://archive.today/20200216071545/https://www.mercurynews.com/2018/03/30/how-childrens-musical-theater-built-a-cast-of-thousands/ . February 16, 2020.
  15. Web site: What Genesis tells us about Smash in 2016. go.com. 21 January 2016. 16 April 2018.

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