East Vancouver WA is One Step Closer to Getting a Giant Performing Arts Center

Vancouver, WA is finally one step closer to leveling up its performing arts game! If you’ve been following the buzz in East Vancouver, you know we’ve been waiting for something big to anchor the Columbia Palisades area. Well, the wait is over (sort of). The “Friends of Center for the Arts” (formerly known as the Southwest Washington Center for the Arts) just dropped the architectural renderings for our future performing arts center, and let’s just say, it’s looking way better than another strip mall.

The A-List Architecture Team

The nonprofit tapped ZGF Architects, the same brilliant minds behind that award-winning redesign of the Portland International Airport (you know, the one with the legendary wood roof). If they can make an airport terminal feel like a spa, imagine what they’ll do for a dedicated performance space right here in Clark County.

Increased Seating

The proposed center features a main stage built for 1,250 guests. To put that in perspective, that’s a massive upgrade from our current local options:

• Skyview Concert Hall: Currently one of our largest seats at 1,150, meaning this new center will officially take the title for dedicated performance space.
• The Kiggins Theatre: We love the historic Art Deco vibes, but at 340 seats, it’s more of an intimate cinema experience than a massive production hub.
• RV Inn Style Resorts Convention Center: While it can hold over 2,000, it’s a convention hall, not a theater purpose-built for the arts.

For those who prefer something a bit more avant-garde, a 300-seat black box theater has also been proposed for flexible, experimental performances.

What Will Be Hosted at the New Performing Arts Center?

The options are endless! But with high-level performers like the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra, Columbia Dance, Groove Nation, Metropolitan Performing Arts, Journey Theater, and more…we can only hope.

What’s Next?

While we can’t buy tickets just yet, these renderings are the first real visual proof that our local arts scene could be graduating to the big leagues. Make sure to subscribe to our free email newsletter to get breaking updates about this new performing arts center as we learn them ⬇️ ⬇️ ⬇️ ⬇️