Tenants, building owner unite to bring arts to Town Center

04/10/06 - April marks an important milestone for a group of local artists and business people. Frustrated with the lack of foot traffic to their building on Coast Hwy, the group decided to work together on events to attract both locals and visitors to their location. They branded their building the Dana Arts Plaza, as it is comprised of a Jeweler, a custom picture framer, a painting and photo studio as well as the headquarters of the non-profit arts organization Dana Point Coastal Arts.

One year ago they held their first event. Called the First Friday Art Reception it brought together local artists, musicians and performers for an evening reception and weekend exhibit. It proved to be popular both with the artists and the public and has continued all year. The event is managed by Dana Point Coastal Arts and sponsored by the City of Dana Point and Jacks Restaurant. "The City was exploring ways to revitalize the "Town Center" area with a cultural/community organization facility and we thought this would be a way to bring life to our part of town," says First Friday coordinator, Cliff Wassmann.

The success of the events caught the eye of building owner Rey Forsum. A long time resident of Capistrano Beach and arts supporter, he agreed to work with the tenants to remodel the building and color coordinate it with their new signage. In addition, improvements were made to accommodate the theatrical performances put on by the Dana Point Theater Company which use an upstairs deck

“It has become a full-fledged cultural center,” says Cliff Wassmann, who opened the first art studio in the building in the early 90’s. “After all this time it is wonderful to see the evolution of this building from just another office space to a something the whole community participates in”. Like other Town Center business, Wassmann says he struggles with the art business in the area due to the lack of pedestrians and high speed of traffic on PCH but is committed to the area and hopes a town center plan that addresses these issues is approved.

In addition to the monthly events, DPCA is now hosting artists month long in their gallery. In May the Dana Arts Plaza will host a special exhibition of works by CSUD teachers and students. Plans for their Annual ArtSpash competition in August that attracts artists from all of South Orange County are being finalized.