The Johnson Hall Renovation Project

Our vision for the future:

A 360-seat restored theater on the third floor of Johnson Hall!
The Johnson Hall Renovation Partnership is an exciting collaborative effort of Johnson Hall, Gardiner Board of Trade, Gardiner Main Street, and the City of Gardiner to rehabilitate our historic 1864 building.  In 2011, we are in the pre-development phase and beginning fundraising for the project, expected to cost about $5 to $6 million.  The projected design will fulfill expressed community needs for an accessible 360-seat theater and space for business meetings and small conferences.  It is seen as a significant economic development project for the revitalization of the Gardiner downtown, and for the Kennebec Valley region’s creative economy and cultural tourism development.

In 2006, the Johnson Hall Renovation Partnership worked with a team of planners headed by Ann Beha Architects and Holt & Lachman Architects & Planners to create a comprehensive strategy and plan for the renovation and sustainable operation of Johnson Hall Performing Arts Center.  The report contains concept drawings of a renovated facility, a business plan, a fundraising feasibility study, initial structural analysis, parking study, and an organizational development plan.

Using this Master Plan, in 2010-11 we are now in the pre-development phase of the project, working with Kevin Bunker of Developers Collaborative, Ann Beha Architects, Sutherland Consulting (historic preservation), and Drummond Woodsum law firm to move forward on qualifying for historic tax credits and raising the funds needed for construction.

The Johnson Hall Regional Advisory Board is assisting with ideas and advice in this effort.

Regional Advisory Board, Johnson Hall Performing Arts Center, 2010

(Organizations for identification only)

Nick Alberding  (Pine State Beverage)

Cynthia Murray-Beliveau

Cary Colwell

Richard Dyer (Dyer Associates PR)

Susan Farnsworth, Esq.

Kaye Flanagan

Wendy Hazard (University of Maine, Augusta)

Mark Johnston (Kennebec Savings Bank)

Laurie Lachance  (Maine Development)

Harry Lanphear

Alfred Lund (One Heart)

Andy MacLean (Mayor of Gardiner)

Stacey Morrison (Ganneston Construction)

Frank O’Hara  (Planning Decisions)

Roger Pomerleau  (NRF Distributors)

Nancy Rines (Kennebec County Commissioner)

Bill Sprague, Jr. (Sprague and Curtis Real Estate)

Peter Thompson (Kennebec Valley Chamber of Commerce)