Issue date: February 24, 1999
Menlo Park's high demand for recreation should not be allowed to run live theater out of town, a real possibility unless a task force studying the issue can come up with a viable plan to accommodate users of 60-year-old Burgess Theatre.
The home of Menlo Players Guild, and more recently the occasional venue for live performances of other groups, including a rejuvenated drama program at nearby Menlo-Atherton High School, Burgess deserves to be saved, either at its current Laurel Street site, or another suitable location in the city.
The Players, and local theater-goers, are concerned about a recreational task force study suggesting the city raze the dilapidated building and pursue ways to share theater space with nearby Menlo-Atherton High School, perhaps in the school's J Building.
Assistant City Manager David Wheaton, who is leading the task force, has promised that several other options for Burgess will be investigated, including repairing the building and maintaining it at the Laurel Street site or replacing it somewhere else in the city. That is a healthy sign, as long as the city keeps its word.
As local arts supporters have pointed out, the city has not been a strong supporter of the theater over the years, and has allowed Burgess to deteriorate to its current unviable status. Now, as the task force is searching desperately for ways to squeeze another playing field or two from the city's ever-more-precious green space, the Burgess site evidently appeared to be easy pickings.
Probably the least costly solution would be to renovate the theater where it stands now, if it is not judged to be beyond repair. With plenty of parking, a good location and maintenance costs shared with other city operations, Burgess could continue to serve the city for another half-century or more. Unlike Palo Alto and other nearby cities, Menlo Park is not blessed with multiple venues for the arts. As the city's only live theater, Burgess deserves better treatment. With less than 300 seats, the theater's "footprint" takes up very little of the valuable open space in Burgess Park. We urge the task force to recommend repairing this gem, rather than pushing another piece of the city's history into the scrap heap.
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