Could someone explain why the City is expending considerable resources to expedite this particular private project when it did nothing to expedite the building of a new fire station and it refuses to do anything regarding the Hawk signals on Middlefield and Linfield that would provide a safe route to schools?

Great news... and hopefully more to come.

At some point the leaders should ask for volunteers as I expect there will be lots of work and support.

Much as I hate to see Menlo Park lose its last, indie-focused theater I wish the Peninsula Arts Guild well in this endeavor and do hope they'll continue to show independent and foreign films in the venue.

One question, one I trust was already discussed by our city council: In the unfortunate event that this project fails for any number of reasons will the PAG be allowed to transform the space into, say, office use? Without wishing to believe we have a Trojan Horse on our hands, which contingencies, if any, have been outlined and to which uses will the new owners be limited if the initial project fails?

Do they plan to serve beer or alcoholic beverages at this venue?

Serving booze in a club is quite different than the current Guild.

Music and booze didn’t work so well for the BBC in years past, as I recall.

Drunken club goers have a tendency to urinate in public late at night after a show gets out, I’ve noticed in other cities. I suspect the same thing would happen in Menlo Park.

How do people feel about this facility serving booze?

Mark D : The space is being designed as an entertainment venue with stage, ready rooms, major storage , etc. and would not be suitable for other uses. So an alternate use likely would have to rebuild the inside at least. Schematic plans shown at city council last night.

"The space is being designed as an entertainment venue with stage, ready rooms, major storage , etc. and would not be suitable for other uses."

You may be surprised by what constitutes a suitable work space for startups these days (speaking from experience).

At last night's Menlo Park City Council meeting (Feb. 13) there was strong support for the proposal of the new non-profit Peninsula Arts Guild (PAG) to re-make the Guild theater into a live-entertainment venue with an additional priority for films and community access to the facility for special programming, including speakers series and other events. Although details remain to be worked out, including thorough review by appropriate city departments, it looks like we will have a new Guild at some time in the near future.

As originator of the Save the Guild petition, I've met with Drew Dunlevie, President of PAG twice now, and he encouraged me to form a community group to work on ideas for film programming, including film festivals at the venue, to complement the live entertainment that will be the core of their venture offered probably weekend evenings. Other times are available for community-generated activities, and the new non-profit is eager for community involvement in their project.

Developments in film distribution, big-screen “home theaters,” video-on-demand, and early release of movies to video distributors are driving changes in the industry. Creating a successful community-centric theater film venue at the new Guild will require hard work, dedication, and creative planning. We can’t save the old Guild as exclusively a movie theater, but we can participate in giving it a new life that includes exciting film offerings intermixed with live entertainment at the same venue. Help create a promising future for the new venue.

Will you volunteer to be part of a community group to help set the course for film at the new Guild? I’m reaching out to our peninsula community to form a representative group of those interested in film to help set the course for an exciting “niche market” for film at the new Guild. Contact me at saveguildtheater@yahoo.com so that we can get started! Suggest people who might be interested in this community group. I’ve already been making contact with young (and experienced) local filmmakers, operators of independent film theaters in SF and Oakland, independent film distributors and film “bookers, faculty in Stanford’s Film and Media Studies programs, and bouncing ideas off Drew, of the PAG, who has a wealth of experience and energy for film at the new Guild, one of his personal priorities. .

I have new graphics you'll be seeing on flyers around town, which feature instead of the banner, "Save the Guild Theater, Your Neighborhood Movie House" in a red frame, now say in the same red frame "Movies at the New Guild" and will try to set up a time and place for a first meeting. Please join in the conversation and honor the film arts history of the Guild as you welcome the new live entertainment venue.

Note: In comments about the use of the space, look at the plans submitted to the city. I'm satisfied that it is re-configureable for live entertainment, speakers' series, and screening movies. Scheduling will have to be creative so that diverse community use (that can't be hosted in available city meeting spaces) can be fairly allocated in the smallish space. The "mezzanine" level adds space and flexibility, and the basement configuration adds storage, "green room" facilities for the entertainers, and other practical uses. The organizers are open to community input, which has given me hope for film arts at the new Guild.

I'm very sad to hear this. Menlo Park needs a movie theatre that will show first run movies. Now I'll have to go to Palo Alto or Redwood City to see a movie. Sad.

Menlo Park neither NEEDS nor CAN have a multi-screen movie complex.

(1) Residents already have great options CONVENIENTLY located nearby. My family goes to the one in Redwood City 3-4 times a month, and it takes about 15 minutes to get there.

(2) The burst of traffic generated by moviegoers, especially at afternoon commute times is undesirable, for Menlo Park. There is already enough local congestion here during this period.

(3) No theater operator is going to build a complex here when there is so much competition nearby. Remember the operator of the one in downtown Redwood City required that the complex at 101 NOT be used for movies. Also, movie theater attendance is declining due to alternative online and cable alternative. The City should simply approach a movie theater operator and ask if they are interested. Then we can eliminate this distraction. Funny how capitalism works...

Finally, I am sure there are much better uses for valuable real estate in downtown Menlo Park, and residents would be much better served with something innovative and unique rather than duplicating something that is already easily accessed nearby.

On the other hand a nonprofit multi-use entertainment venue would be wonderful IF the "numbers"work.

I am hoping that in addition to a schedule of independent film at the new Guild, to complement the live entertainment and other programs organized by the community for the location, that "sleepy" Menlo Park, awakening, might also support a multi-screen (2 or 3 screens) showing mainstream movies, which is one of the City Council's goals for our downtown, to bring in local and peninsula residents to our local shops and restaurants.

Our proximity to Stanford and the new developments with housing (Greenheart's Station 1300 and Stanford's further up El Camino near Safeway), should be able to support both kinds of film, and "out of towners" who don't relish the drive to Redwood City. And we do need more parking NOW, in addition to future needs, and parking garage with parking below-ground, and a theater above, will serve both parking needs and enrich our entertainment/cultural appeal.

By the way, if you are interested in promoting a schedule of film at the new Guild, we need to start planning input NOW for film arts scheduling at the new Guild - see my earlier comment. Please volunteer to help provide community input by writing to saveguildtheater@yahoo.com - to save the movies at the re-born Guild.

The "Save the Guild" movement is actually helping to destroy the Guild.
We don't need a multi-screen theater showing the same first-run over-produced over-hyped movies they show in the multiplexes in Redwood City and Mountain View--a short drive away.

We have an irreplaceable gem in the Guild!

The Guild brings us the best of indie films and foreign films of high caliber that the big multiplexes don't show. And some of us prefer the more intimate experience of a small, single screen theater, to the commotion of the multiplex.

If you want to use the Guild for other purposes than showing movies, you'll have to destroy it. The one exception may be an occasional live performance or concert, perhaps, as the movie house seating could be preserved for that. Otherwise you'd have to tear out the seating and flatten out the raked floor. But we have far better nearby choices for concerts, etc.: Menlo Atherton's Center for the Performing Arts, Stanford's many venues, the Lucie Stern Theater in Palo Alto, the Fox in Redwood City, and the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts.
Listen: Menlo Park tore down our own Burgess Theater which housed live theater, and tore down our iconic Art Deco Park Theater, which also showed indie and foreign films.
We gave Menlo Atherton High School over $2million towards their theater, where our residents are supposed to have special privileges to rent the hall. It's a 5 minute drive from our downtown and a much better place for concerts than the Guild could ever be, since it was acoustically designed for them in the first place.
Let's not repeat our mistakes.
Let's REALLY save the Guild! It is a theater for movie lovers. Patronize it!

Hope there’s a business plan for this effort.....



The Point of No Return for North America’s Box Office » FilmTake

Web Link

In 2017, North American theatrical admissions fell to 1992 levels.

Box office revenue remained around $11 billion, based on a 3.3% increase in ticket prices. Overall North American revenue was down 2.3% from $11.4 billion in 2016.

Superhero, sequel, and remake regurgitation is keeping many traditional theatergoers away. Increasingly, studios are relying on the 14-27 demographic to drive development and production decisions. This short-term strategy might be paying off for the top three studios, but Sony and Paramount are falling behind dramatically.

It’s no great surprise that Disney was the runaway leader in box office revenue with $2.4 billion or 22% of domestic market share in 2017. Films release by Warner Bros. grossed $2 billion, accounting for 19% of the market.

Admissions in U.S and Canada dropped 6% to 1.23 billion tickets.

N.A. Box Office

Thanks Stu - so why is this project a more important Council and City priority than a new fire station or improved pedestrian crossings?

The staff report clearly states:
"Impact on City Resources
Additional costs will be incurred for the use of consultant services, with those costs determined shortly after
this study session. Staff costs are expected to be within the current operating budget. There could be an
impact to the project timelines for other development projects as staff resources are reallocated to this Work
Plan priority item."

And the improved pedestrian crossings have been taken OFF the priority list:

"• Middlefield Rd. & Linfield Dr. crosswalk improvements and Sharon Rd. sidewalk installation initiatives
moved from the Potential Workplan items to the Five-year Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) with the
understanding that no work would commence in the 2018-19 CIP"

Why does Menlo Park spends so much time, staff resources and money studying projects like a parking garage and multiplex cinema - especially a combination of the two - BEFORE (1) developing a sound and persuasive justification for them and soliciting resident feedback, (2) considering alternative solutions for problems like downtown short term parking (there are many!!!), (3) determining economic feasibility, e.g., has a cinema operator displayed strong interest in this development.

We live in the Silicon Valley where successful businesses rigorously scrutinize and test innovative ideas. In contrast, our City Council presumes something is needed largely based on the OPINIONS of a small minority of residents and then spends precious resources on designing a single solution. For example, Menlo Park spent about two years and a half million dollars on the El Camino Corridor Study. How did residents and businesses benefit from that adventure? This will likely happen again with the unneeded parking structure. (Note: Palo Alto recently determined it would cost over a $100,000 an incremental parking space in a lot near California Avenue.) If the City has already performed a rigorous "needs analysis" for either a downtown multiplex cinema or a parking garage ,please share it with our entire community. We deserve this critical information and the Council owes it to us now. You were not elected to make big decisions on our behalf without proactively engaging us in the decision-making and showing why projects are needed.

The real irony here is that the city is falling all over itself to expedite this private entity project ( including changes to the DSP) in contrast to the years of costly delays that the city placed in the way of a new fire station. Those fire station delays cost the taxpayers at least a million dollars!

And now the council has directed the staff to delay essential pedestrian signal projects ( one of which already has $175k allocated by the Fire District plus a loan to the city for a matching $175k) because the city staff is too busy doing things like this private project.

There's a reason theater attendance is falling. Actually, several.

The inexpensive availability of high resolution video systems for the home, which:

allows you to pause movies and rewind/fast forward - repeatedly

not have to put up with idiots that don't understand they're in a theater and not their living room (talking, texting, etc)

watch a movie on YOUR schedule.

Not pay STUPID prices for popcorn and snacks.

Bottom line, the home theater experience has become so much better than the theater that there is no point in going to a theater anymore. The theater is on its way out that is why some are installing luxurious reclining seating and other amenities trying to replicate what people can get at home.

I haven't been in a theater in at least 13 years and don't miss it at all.

Three Council Member seats will be filled in November. I hope the candidates can demonstrate they have the vision, wisdom and courage to lead rather than "administer" our City. It's a tough job hampered by an efficient and ineffective bureaucratic planning process that no one has the stomach to change. So candidates need to be willing to challenge things that do not make sense, demand adequate information and justifications, and figure out better ways to harness the energies, experiences, and knowledge of residents who are willing to help on individual projects but are not interested in joining a commission. Our community needs to figure out how to leverage the huge amount of talent that lives and works here.

In my prior comment, I meant "ineffective and inefficient" bureaucratic planning process.

We could always add an extra story to the renovation with a new Library. That way we can combine two expensive, unnecessary projects.

One observation is that folks seem to be imagining something that this project MAY not be. The fact that the proposing enitity is a non profit seems to have no bearing on the economic proposition to our residents. Similarly, conversations about films seems to be a sideline to the main goal, which is clearly live music. At the end of the day, if a live music venue, with high prices and traffic is the outcome, are we satisfied with what happened to the Guild? The council has to encourage a broader range of options that carry their support. I'd worry that the zeal to save the Guild, which is worthy for sure, may cause folks to look past the details of what the replacement may actually be.

How come the Guild owner doesn't speak up... like he did for the Park Theater