St. Cecilia's Chapel: A restaurant or a cultural hub?

The Bradley-Woolman St. Cecilia Chapel (1620 Sixth Ave., Cortez Hill), former home of Sledgehammer Theatre, could become a cultural hub once again.

In January, Cassidy Turley BRE Commercial, on behalf of the Centre City Development Corporation (CCDC), released a request for qualifications or request for proposals (RFQ/P) for the adaptive re-use of the chapel.

The proposals were submitted by March and several public meetings discussing the ideas have been held since. From a cultural center for architects, designers and city planners to an art exhibition and education center, below is a quick summary of the ideas. The proposals, by the way, are currently under review. A final selection will be made by July.

• Gallerist and art broker Alexander Salazar of Alexander Salazar Fine Art, proposed turning St. Cecilia's into an art gallery and exhibition space. In the proposal, he says, "St. Cecilia will serve as the arts link into Downtown San Diego and Bankers Hill/Balboa park. Culturally, it will become the stop in between both areas that already have strong support. Tapping into both markets makes sense and will insure the success of St. Cecilia's."
  

• James Brown and James Gates of Public Architecture Planning and The Developer Team of Voyage LLC proposed using St. Cecilia's as an active San Diego art and architecture forum. In the proposal they say, "We propose a nonprofit entity, 'Exposure,' to provide a program of curated interdisciplinary exhibitions, artist's talks, discussions, film screenings, music presentations, conferences and education events that will engage many different cultural, art and architectural groups in San Diego."

• Alberto Maestre Restaurant Group of Candelas have proposed a new restaurant. In the proposal, it says St. Cecilia's would be transformed into, "a full service restaurant, retreat and entrainment place with a mystical atmosphere that creates an unusual diner/entertainment experience in an unexpected place."
  

• Mauricio Couturier and Arsalun Tafazoli of El Camino, Craft & Commerce, Neighborhood and Noble Experiment have proposed turning the chapel into a European-style beer hall and locally sourced restaurant. They write, "San Diego's brewing culutre has evolved over the past five years, building a national reputation. Our concept fulfills the demand for a large venue destination for locals and visitors to pay homage to San Diego's beer culture while showcasing San Diego's accessibility to local farms and purveyors."