BILLINGS — The Billings Symphony Orchestra and Chorale introduced Wednesday it obtained the most important donation within the group’s historical past: a brand new workplace house at 2820 Second Ave. N. in downtown Billings.
About three,600 sq. toes of the ground-floor house was donated to the symphony by the Jack and Adrea Sukin household and the Robert and Sandra Sukin household. The constructing can be residence to The Sassy Biscuit restaurant and Brockel’s Sweets.
“That is the most important single donation to the Billings Symphony within the historical past of the group. Actually, thanks to the Sukin household. We’re honored to obtain this present,” mentioned Ignacio Barron Viela, the symphony’s government director.
Viela additionally introduced a donation for the renovation for the brand new house from Dr. John and Patricia Burg.
The house is thrice bigger than the symphony’s present workplace house within the third flooring of the Montana Nationwide Financial institution constructing at 201 N. Broadway in downtown Billings. Hopefully the brand new house will enable the symphony extra public visibility, Viela mentioned.
“Within the final years, our patrons would say, the place are you positioned?” Viela mentioned. “We have been searching for an area the place we are able to create a stream and motion of patrons coming to see us and coming to us to speak about our mission and historical past. By being floor flooring and being downtown is simply excellent to perform that.”
The downtown location is close to the symphony’s residence venue of The Alberta Bair Theater. Viela talked about plans to host small musical performances within the new house with the potential of opening it up for music classes sooner or later.
“It creates so many alternatives,” Viela mentioned. “An area that we are able to maybe incorporate into the Artwork Stroll. An area the place we are able to create additional partnerships with different artwork companions on the town and different organizations.”
The symphony will ship request for proposals to design and renovate the brand new house quickly. However the hope is for the group to maneuver in someday in the summertime of 2020.
The change in location additionally comes with a re-branding for the symphony. Subsequent 12 months is the 70th symphony season in Billings.
The re-branding would make the symphony “much more interesting to our neighborhood. That’s going to be an thrilling time. The truth that we’re re-branding and transferring to a brand new house is admittedly going collectively. We imagine it’s simply one of the best time,” Viela mentioned.
Count on a brand new emblem and web site design to return with that re-branding.
This 12 months has been good for the symphony. The group needed to relocate to the Lincoln Heart for the reason that Alberta Bair Theater has been underneath renovations all 12 months. However that hasn’t slowed the group down.
Viela mentioned the group has grown its neighborhood engagement applications by 10 p.c. It is also grown its endowment fund by practically 40 p.c. And the symphony reached a ticket gross sales milestone final weekend.
“This 12 months on the Lincoln Heart has been going implausible. Final Saturday was the document variety of ticket gross sales in a single season live performance within the historical past of the Billings Symphony. With over 1,500 tickets offered at that live performance. It is a success for us and we need to maintain that development and produce ahead consciousness of the symphony in the neighborhood,” Viela mentioned. “I wish to thank our patrons and supporters and our symphony members of the family for making that so.”
