Joplin’s Future Home for the Arts…

The vision

The Cornell Complex will create a home for the arts in Joplin to educate, enlighten, and entertain, while attracting more people and activities to downtown Joplin.

The Cornell Complex will:

• Strengthen the cultural opportunities in our city and region

• Bring visual and performing artists from across the U.S. and world to Joplin

• Showcase and nurture the region’s creativity through visual and performing arts

• Provide world-class amenities

• Drive cultural tourism

• Directly benefit retailers, restaurants, and other businesses

• Generate new sales tax revenue for the City of Joplin

The Cornell Complex will enrich the cultural heart of our city, inspiring people to live, work, play, and stay in Joplin.

The future home of Connect2Culture and Spiva Center for the Arts.

Continue learning about the Complex below or click here to download the November 2020 presentation book.

BUILDING COMPONENTS

The Cornell Complex will consist of:

• A 37,000 square foot building with Spiva Center for the Arts occupying approximately 30%, Connect2Culture approximately 34%, and all shared, outdoor, and circulation spaces totaling approximately 36%.  

• A 470-seat indoor state-of-the-art Beshore Performance Hall that is highly adaptable with a proscenium theatre and theatrical tiered seating that can also be converted into a flat floor configuration as needed. The Hall will include a shared stage for both indoor and outdoor performances and has been designed to be as multifunctional as possible to accommodate and promote all types of activity – including receptions, trade shows, galas, and other special community events. Such flexibility will allow for a robust range of both independent and collaborative indoor and outdoor programming.

• A new home for Spiva Center for the Arts, the region’s premier visual arts destination. Spiva will benefit from new and expanded gallery space including the Freeman Health System Main Gallery, a Regional Gallery, the Harry M. Cornell, Jr. Permanent Collection Gallery, and a Rental Gallery. Classroom spaces for educational programming will be more dynamic and create new opportunities.

• A home for Connect2Culture, Joplin’s community arts agency and performing arts presenter. C2C will present world-class performances in its home theater, the Beshore Performance Hall, as well as the amphitheater located in the Leggett & Platt Green.

• The Leggett & Platt Green, which includes a 2,000-person capacity amphitheater featuring an outdoor stage perfect for concerts, plays, film festivals, and other performances. The landscape has been contoured and reinforced to serve as a flexible community green space for additional programming such as art festivals, car shows, and farmers markets.

• The Crossland Construction Rooftop Terrace will provide a stunning 1,500-square-foot venue with festive lighting that will accommodate intimate performances, weddings, and other gatherings.

• A home for the arts in Joplin that will provide office space for arts and cultural organizations in the area, increasing outreach and collaboration among organizations as well as an opportunity to use the facilities to support their programming.  

• Community meeting and hospitality spaces for private events ranging from corporate luncheons, civic meetings, and community celebrations.  

• A welcoming and spacious lobby that takes advantage of the consistent north daylight that can be used by both organizations and used as an entertainment option for other functions.  

• Several catering and warming kitchens capable of serving banquets, receptions, and small dinners. 

• A variety of shared spaces, such as art offices, meeting rooms, service facilities, and storage spaces for related arts organizations.

interior renderings

First Floor

Lobby & Grand Stairway

Beshore Performance Hall

SECOND FLOOR

Second Floor Lobby, Entrance to Spiva Center for the Arts Galleries, and Donor Lounge

Freeman Health System Main Gallery & Harry M. Cornell, Jr. Permanent Collection Gallery

THIRD FLOOR

Spiva Center for the Arts and Connect2Culture Offices, Breakout Meeting Room, Library/Board Room, Classrooms

BACKGROUND

Over 10 years ago, this grassroots initiative began when members of the Joplin community gathered to address the need for a visual and performing arts center that would serve as an anchor for downtown Joplin. Connect2Culture was created to make this Center a reality. The Phase I professional feasibility study was completed December 2010.

Plans were temporarily put on hold due to the May 22, 2011, EF-5 tornado that devastated the city. Through recovery, Joplin came back even stronger and focus intensified to realize the Center. The Phase II professional feasibility was study completed September 2016.

The Phase III capital campaign is underway. Private citizens with a passion for future generations have led this effort. Now is the time to invest in Joplin’s future!

Where are we now?

Through a public-private partnership, a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was put in place between the City of Joplin and Connect2Culture. The MOU states that the City will donate the land (parking lot in front of Joplin Memorial Hall) for the Harry M. Cornell Arts & Entertainment Complex if a minimum of $14 million in commitments is received by June 1, 2019.

On June 3, 2019, Connect2Culture was pleased to announce meeting this initial fundraising goal of $14 million, securing the land donation for the project.

On January 27, 2020, the project started the new year with a special announcement – a total of $15.8 million in commitments had been received and a newly expanded total of $17.5 million was revealed to further enhance the Complex.

To date, a total of 268 individuals, businesses, foundations, and community organizations have committed $16,257,752 – nearly 93% of the expanded $17.5 million goal.

Invest now! Join us in building a new cultural gem for Joplin!

WHAT IS SPIVA CENTER FOR THE ARTS?

Spiva Center for the Arts is an independent, non-profit 501(c)(3) regional arts and education center tracing its roots to the Ozark Artists Guild formed in 1948. Over the last dozen years it has become the area’s “anchor” institution for the arts.

Currently located in the historic Cosgrove Building downtown, Spiva has three galleries, a gift shop, classrooms, and a library/public meeting room.

Annually, Spiva:

• offers visual arts experiences to 12,000+ patrons, has 600+ members, and benefits  from 200+ volunteers who contribute 2,400+ volunteer hours

• provides art education opportunities to 1,000+ students from pre-school to senior citizens and annually hosts a special program for 1,600+ area third graders

Currently, Spiva:

• does not meet national American Alliance of Museums (AAM) standards necessary to host national touring exhibits

• cannot attain AAM accreditation without significant, costly system upgrades​

• lacks climate controlled storage for exhibits on arrival and departure, and sufficient door heights/width

what is connect2culture?

Connect2Culture (C2C), a non-profit arts organization founded in 2009, will present performances inside and outside the Complex year-round.

C2C is unlike any organization in the Joplin area:

• A respected community arts agency, supporting and promoting all arts and cultural activity in the city with a goal of increasing involvement and growing audience

• A visionary organization that has led The Cornell Complex initiative – it never ceases 

• A performing arts presenter as of fall 2017, bringing a variety of national touring
  performers to Joplin

C2C continues to grow audiences and develop resources to strengthen the arts, culture, and entertainment in the city.

C2C’s mission is to ignite a passion for the arts, culture, and entertainment.

A COMMUNITY ASSET WITH BROAD APPEAL

As designed, The Cornell Complex will:

• Become a transformative destination that will develop and attract new audiences in Joplin, spurring cultural tourism from the Four-State region and beyond

• Create a versatile and inviting community gathering place

• Become a new home for the arts in Joplin, providing venue space and office space for area arts organizations

• Provide state-of-the-art spaces for world-class visual art exhibitions and classes,
  including the Freeman Health System Main Gallery, the Regional Focus Gallery,
  the Harry M. Cornell, Jr. Permanent Collection Gallery, and a Rental Gallery

• Provide three versatile venues for performing arts ranging from “Opry to Opera” – the Beshore Performance Hall, the Leggett & Platt Green, and the Crossland Construction Rooftop Terrace

• Create a broad range of opportunities for regional businesses, civic groups, schools, churches, hospitals, and educational organizations to develop cooperative programs for meetings, special events, fundraisers, speaking engagements, award shows, exhibits, performances, workshops, services, graduations, weddings, and other celebrations

• Offer quality visual and performing arts events that will delight the community-at-large

Potential collaborators for C2C and Spiva:

• Pro Musica

• Heartland Opera Theatre

• Joplin Little Theatre

• Midwest Regional Ballet Company & School

• Missouri Southern State University

• Post Art Library

• Joplin Arts Fest

• Joplin Regional Artists Coalition

• Downtown Joplin Alliance

• Langston Hughes Cultural Society

• Dream Theatre Co.

• Karen’s Dance Studio

• and more!

New opportunities for programming:

• A broad variety of music, theater, dance, comedy, film, concerts, and lectures in an intimate setting

• International, national, regional, and permanent collection exhibits in museum-quality galleries

• Exhibit-related programs such as artist talks and panels

• Piano series and recitals

• Family-friendly performances and children’s theater

• Corporate/community events, seminars, ceremonies, banquets, weddings, receptions, and celebrations

• Touring performers and local productions

ABOUT THE NAME

Harry M. Cornell, Jr., Joplin, committed the lead gift of $5 million to support funding of the Harry M. Cornell Arts & Entertainment Complex in downtown Joplin on Thursday, December 14, 2017. The $5 million donation included the naming rights for the project and kicked off the capital campaign. Mr. Cornell has also committed to provide some ongoing funding over the next 15 years to support sustainability of the project.

About Harry M. Cornell, Jr.:

Harry M. Cornell, Jr., chairman emeritus of Leggett & Platt, Incorporated, Carthage, Missouri, transformed a small regional company founded in 1883 into a Fortune 500 manufacturing giant traded on the New York Stock Exchange. The grandson of a founder of Leggett & Platt, Cornell joined the company in sales in 1950 and advanced through the ranks from high school summers spent unloading rail cars to his post-college years as a traveling salesman. He excelled in his work as a plant manager in Ennis, Texas and his leadership skills eventually led him to become president and chief executive officer in 1960. During the next 52 years, he transformed Leggett & Platt from five plants and $7 million in annual sales into a $4 billion company with 130 plants in 18 countries.

Leggett & Platt is a world leader in manufacturing a diverse group of products found throughout the home, the office, and in automobiles. The company employs nearly 19,000 around the globe. In 2014, Cornell was inducted into the American Furniture Hall of Fame as an Industry Fellow. In 2016, the world headquarters of Leggett & Platt was dedicated as the Cornell Campus to honor his role in the success of Leggett & Platt. He was recently honored to receive the 2018 Lifetime Bedding Achievement Award as a Retail Giant of Bedding by Furniture Today, the business newspaper of the furniture industry.

DOWNTOWN PARKING STUDY

Corner Greer & Associates, one-half of our architectural team, went above-and-beyond creating a thorough “Downtown Parking Study.” There is a total of 932 existing parking spots (767 parking spots + ~165 street parking) within a 1 block radius of The Cornell Complex. There are a total of 1,625 parking spots within a 2 block radius. Currently, the Memorial Hall parking lot holds ~228 spots. Included in the study are comparisons from parking lots of local establishments.