Auditorium Audit.

They used to be called multi-purpose rooms or school auditoriums. But now, some school districts see them as community group centers, theaters or even revenue-generating performance halls.

Ray Bordwell, director of educational facilities consulting for Perkins & Will, a Chicago-based architecture, design and planning firm, has noticed a definite trend toward making schools more usable by more people. "Many communities are looking at other uses for school facilities, particularly theaters, auditoriums and libraries," he says.

Of course, these projects require funds. To get a bond issue approved for new school construction when the majority of its constituents don't have school-age children, administrators can "start offering up a facility that will have amenities to benefit the community," says Bordwell. The facility might include an auditorium large enough to accommodate community theater, for instance. "It becomes a tax issue and not an a education issue," he says.

Bordentown (NJ.) Regional School District has been building community-centered school facilities for years, says Superintendent John Polomano. "The school and the community are intrinsically tied together, so the more we can share, the better. It makes no sense to duplicate facilities or charge people rent. We're all on the same tax base and we serve the same public."

At one elementary school, for instance, a single room is used during the day as a cafeteria, auditorium and a gym for students. In the evening, that room is used by the community for a children's basketball league. The high school auditorium is used after school hours for community concerts and other events.

Bordentown has just broken ground on a new $30 million, 190,000-square-foot high school with an auditorium that will have fixed seating for 1,000 people, the approximate high school population. "The entire project was proposed by a citizen's task force that looked at increasing enrollment, and the project's bond referendum passed overwhelmingly," Polomano points out.

Getting an existing auditorium in shape for both school and community events can mean the need for upgrades to sound and lighting systems. For instance, the Flagler Auditorium in Bunnell, Fla., which has been open since 1991 on the campus of Flagler Palm Coast High School, just completed a $250,000 upgrade to remedy problems with intelligibility and the spread of sound. The free-standing building seats up to 1,000 people and includes a large stage, fixed seating and a musician's pit. "We have our normal high school programs--school plays, fashion shows and dance shows--but we also have our professional season," says Bruce Brady, the auditorium's head technician. The facility hosts four Broadway shows a year, plus other musical and theatrical performances.

Paul Chavez, director of systems applications for audio products manufacturer Harman Professional Group, in Northridge, Calif.--which did the Flagler upgrades and also is working on the Bordentown project--says he's seen an overall increase of sensifivity to what good sound is. "People are going to professional sports facilities and theaters and hearing sophisticated sound systems," Chavez notes. "And now, even high schools and colleges are stepping up their level of entertainment value as they become a community resource."