Staff Report
The Solvang Festival Theater’s 60-foot tall utility poles and lighting cages were extracted one by one on Wednesday, Oct. 7, as captivated onlookers watched from Second Street in Solvang behind lines of caution tape.
The poles were cut and lifted by a 250-ton crane high above the Theater Patron Garden’s majestic trees and transported safely to the ground on Second Street.
The theater’s $4.7 million rebuilding project will ensure structural integrity and safety for generations to come, and includes upgrades to electrical, lighting and sound technology.
The 10-month project will replace the 47-year-old utility poles with new steel lighting columns and completely rebuild the rear wall and walkway of the theater that surrounds audience seating, increasing the wall height to 14 feet. This will improve the audience experience by reducing wind and noise.
Additionally, the project will provide improved access to the box office and the theater that will be code compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The project is slated for completion by July 2022.
Solvang Theaterfest is the 501 (C ) (3) nonprofit corporation that owns and operates Solvang Festival Theater. It is managed by an all-volunteer Board of Directors.
For more information, contact Solvang Theaterfest Executive Director Scott Coe at exec.director@solvangtheaterfest.org.
