Grand Opening Ceremony Unveils New Performing Arts Center and Library
The Sweetwater Union High School District (SUHSD) rolled out the red carpet on Friday, December 10, 2010 to welcome the new facilities completed at Chula Vista High School (CVHS) under the Prop O school construction bond program. New construction and modernization on the CVHS campus, totaling $18.5 million, included a new creative and performing arts center, a new technologically advanced library and modernized P.E. locker rooms and gymnasium.
SUHSD Board President Arlie Ricasa welcomed the elected officials at pre-event ceremony. “In 2006 when the people of the South Bay community approved Prop O, they had a vision. They made a commitment for the children in this community to have access to modern, sustainable and technologically advanced educational facilities,” said Ricasa. “They knew that this would benefit the children of this community and future generations.”
The new multi-purpose creative arts facility, designed to be LEED-Gold, is 25,729- square-feet and houses the 680-seat theater, as well as contemporary rehearsal facilities for the School for Creative and Performing Arts’ band, choir, school of dance, mariachi and orchestra. As South Bay’s largest theater and performing arts center, the facility will be open for public use and will be a tremendous asset to the community.
“For many students, the experience of success in the arts is a revelation that learning matters and that they matter,” said CVHS Principal Steve Liazarraga. “With nearly one-third of the student population at CVHS enrolled in the School for Creative and Performing Arts, these facilities are impacting a large population at our school.”
Additionally, students at CVHS will enjoy a new 5,600-square-foot, Grecian-inspired library equipped with a technology center and quiet study area for students. High-density moving storage units have also been installed so the CVHS campus will have room to expand the number of textbooks and resource materials available to students.
The flashing lights from student paparazzi cameras greeted community members, leaders and elected officials as they arrived to the grand opening ceremony in front of the crowd of nearly 700, officially opening the doors for the City of Chula Vista to use the CVHS Performing Arts Center. The spectacular evening concluded with CVHS’s School for Creative and Performing Arts’ inaugural performance in the new state-of-the-art theater.