Lincoln Hall to start $10 million fundraising campaign

Portland State’s School of Fine and Performing Arts is starting a fundraising campaign to raise approximately $10 million in funds for improvements to Lincoln Hall after the building was closed for renovations earlier this year.

Barbara Sestak, dean for the School of Fine and Performing Arts, said that the fundraising events will occur over the next several years. Approximately $10 million will be needed for the improvements, which cannot begin construction until current renovations to Lincoln Hall are completed.

State funds for the building’s current renovation projects have designated to only be used for deferred maintenance projects, and cannot be spent on any improvements or additions to Lincoln Hall, according to PSU Facilities and Planning.

The majority of the budget for the building’s improvements will go to adding a new entry to Lincoln Hall from Southwest Broadway Street, as well as a glass window bay that will bring additional square footage, Sestak said.

Aside from the new entry and a glass bay, improvements will also be made to the band room, and is expected to included improved access for disabled people, Sestak said.

The performance space in the basement will also be renovated, and Sestak said she hopes fundraising will bring new seats and mechanical systems.

As part of the proposed enhancements, Sestak said that there is an opportunity to take space below the basement and create a black box theater. The new theater will be used for student performances, as well as be accessible for community use.

Because of this, Sestak said that they will keep Lincoln as original as possible, which includes uncovering the skylights that are original to the building. Restoring the skylights will also likely gain the building a LEED certification point, rating the building as more sustainable than before, Sestak said.

The Vanguard previously reported in an article Feb. 19, that Lincoln Hall, the oldest building on campus, was going off-line to upgrade the building’s interior design, heating and ventilation systems, as well as its seismic reinforcement. The project was expected to finish by 2010.

According to a May 2007 press release, the Oregon Legislature has appropriated $29 million to fix Lincoln Hall’s, “sagging roof, corroded pipes, falling ceiling tiles and other infrastructure failures.”

An additional $11.986 million has been provided from the State Energy Loan Program to help cover costs.

Requests to the Facilities and Planning department for a list of Lincoln Hall’s necessary deferred maintenance projects were not answered by press time.

Sestak said it is important that Lincoln Hall, which was originally a high school, is a prominent part of Portland State.

“[It’s a] real connector to the community,” Sestak said. “[It] is usually the first PSU building people see since it is on Broadway.”

Lincoln Hall timelineOctober 2006– Lincoln Hall suffers approximately $900,000 in flood damages due to a water leak from Cramer Hall.

January 2007– Portland State President Daniel Bernstine appeals to the state Legislature for an additional $172 million in state deferred maintenance funds for renovations to Lincoln and other buildings on campus.

– Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski gives $29 million in capital construction funds for reparations to Lincoln’s seismic instability, pending the state Legislature’s $172 million capital construction for higher-education package.

February 2007– State legislators, still considering passing the $172 million capital construction project, tour Lincoln Hall, getting a firsthand look at damage to the building’s basement and roof areas.

April 2007– Gov. Kulongoski visits PSU, taking a tour of Lincoln and other deferred maintenance projects on campus.

February 2008– The music department relocates from Lincoln Hall to the Extended Studies Building in preparation for the building’s closing.

August 2008– Lincoln Hall is closed for renovations, and is not expected to re-open until 2010.

November 2008– PSU’s School of Fine and Performing Arts begins $10 million fundraiser campaign for improvements to Lincoln Hall, which is expected to take several years. Improvements cannot begin construction until current renovation projects are complete.–Steve Haske