Calabasas Civic Center underway
By Joann Groff joann@theacorn.com

IRIS SMOOT/Acorn Newspapers GROUNDBREAKING--The Calabasas City Council officially begins construction on the city's new $41-million civic center at The Commons. The work will take 18 months to complete.

Construction began this week on the $41-million Calabasas Civic Center, slated to be completed in the summer of 2008.

About 200 people, including dozens of local dignitaries, planners and volunteers connected to the project gathered last Saturday at the 7.7-acre site behind The Commons shopping center for an official groundbreaking ceremony.

The complex will include a two-story, 27,700-square-foot city hall, a 25,700-square-foot public library, a 3,000-square-foot assembly hall, an outdoor amphitheater and a public plaza.

A surrounding plaza will feature a rose garden, olive grove and strolling paths.

Mayor Dennis Washburn, who served as master of ceremonies at the Jan. 6 groundbreaking, said it took 10 years to "reach consensus" about how the civic center should look. The construction will take 520 days, he said.

CITY PRIDE--Former Calabasas Mayor Michael Harrison explains the scale model of the new Calabasas Civic Center to his daughter, Lily, at the groundbreaking ceremony on Saturday.

"Our mission was to make a shared destiny of our citizens' manifest," Washburn said. "I can't imagine a better example. Today we try to reach our destiny."

City Councilmember Mary Sue Maurer gave recognition to the city's founders, who began developing plans for The Commons and the civic center in the early 1990s. She said the founders "had a vision that brought us here today and that made us a leader.

"Isn't this a great American city?" Maurer asked the audience, which responded with applause.

Also in attendance were members of the Civic Center Task Force, a commission made up of city officials and volunteers who gave the project guidance.

Bessie Condos of the State Office of Library Construction, which awarded the city an $8.2-million library grant, was on hand as well.

"The public library is the heart of the community because it reaches out to all of your constituents," Condos said.

The new, permanent home for the Calabasas Library will contain thousands of volumes and vast information about the history of the community.

Councilmember Jonathon Wolfson called the center a "beating civic heart for the city."

When completed, the Calabasas Civic Center will earn Gold Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.

The LEED Green Building Rating System is the national benchmark for design, construction and operation of environmentally friendly buildings. The city registered the project during planning and the organization provided a roadmap for how to conserve natural resources, reduce operating costs and house healthier occupants.

Washburn said the civic center will prove that Calabasas "can live well by living lightly."

Bernard Brothers of San Fernando will construct the steel and concrete block buildings in a Mediterranean and Spanish mission architectural style. The city hall will have a lobby, city departmental offices, city council chamber and public vestibule for meetings and gatherings.

The civic center plans were drawn by New York architect Robert Stern and Associates.

"I know it won't be long before we gather to dedicate (it)," Condos said.