CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Dec. 22, 2014 —To help make Charlotte’s urban core more vibrant and create new places for the community to connect, Foundation for the Carolinas will engage experts in a planning process to revitalize the historic Carolina Theatre at Belk Place with $550,000 from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

Foundation for the Carolinas has a plan in place to renovate the Carolina Theatre at Belk Place – located adjacent to the foundation’s headquarters – and has established a vision for the theater as Charlotte’s premier civic engagement space. Building on this plan, Knight funding will support research into programming and design of the theater, as well as crafting and executing an effective civic theater concept. Foundation for the Carolinas will call on experts to help develop strategies around using digital tools to reach new audiences; creating a multiuse, modern space within the framework of the historic theater; leveraging technology to encourage civic participation; and the branding and marketing of the theater as Charlotte’s civic hub.

The newly renovated theater will host town halls, TED Talks, symposiums and debates. It will allow citizens to engage on community issues, have a dialogue on neutral ground and make connections with individuals and groups from diverse backgrounds. In addition to these civic and local initiatives and learning opportunities, the Carolina Theatre at Belk Place will host dance, film and other performances that attract audiences and bring people together.

“The varied events that will be curated for this space call for the ability to have flexible space configurations, high-end technology and user-friendly community engagement tools,” said Curt Walton, vice president of real estate and facilities management at Foundation for the Carolinas and lead on the project. “Support from Knight Foundation will allow us to do the necessary research to put civic engagement and community building at the forefront of programming.”

“With an urban core full of young professionals and underdeveloped neighborhoods nearby, a civic theater in Charlotte’s main corridor carries with it the potential to encourage connections between people of all ages and backgrounds, while motivating residents to get involved and participate in shaping their community,” said Susan Patterson, Knight Foundation program director for Charlotte. “Using the theater as an anchor, we hope to seize the opportunity to craft a new ‘living room’ for the city and create the most engaging civic space possible.”

The Carolina Theatre was built in 1927 and was once a major performance venue for the Charlotte region, hosting such talent as Bob Hope, Katharine Hepburn and Elvis Presley.

The city of Charlotte gave the theater, which has stood vacant since 1978, to Foundation for the Carolinas in 2013.

Support for Foundation for the Carolinas forms one part of Knight Foundation’s efforts to promote civic engagement and expand opportunities in Charlotte, while fostering talent retention and attraction. Knight has also invested in a vision plan to re-energize uptown Charlotte’s North Tryon corridor. The Carolina Theatre at Belk Place will serve as a catalyst for this transformation.

For more information on the project, visit www.fftc.org/carolina-theatre

About Foundation for the Carolinas

Foundation for the Carolinas is a nonprofit community foundation serving donors and a broad range of charitable purposes in North and South Carolina. With assets of more than $1.5 billion, the foundation encourages and makes possible philanthropic giving by individuals of all means to benefit their communities. Visit www.fftc.org.
 

About the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation

Knight Foundation supports transformational ideas that promote quality journalism, advance media innovation, engage communities and foster the arts. We believe that democracy thrives when people and communities are informed and engaged. KnightFoundation.org.

Contacts:

Liz Cheek, Foundation for the Carolinas, Marketing Specialist, [email protected], 704-973-4587

Anusha Alikhan, Director of Communications, Knight Foundation, 305-908-2677, [email protected]