BuildOUT California, World’s First LGBT Industry Association for Construction & Architecture, partners with Another Planet Entertainment for Castro Theatre Project with Historic MOU
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BuildOUT California, World’s First LGBT Industry Association for Construction & Architecture, partners with Another Planet for Castro Theatre Project with Historic MOU
22 March 2022 – San Francisco. Bay Area small business Another Planet Entertainment (www.apeconcerts.com) is partnering with BuildOUT California (www.buildoutcalifornia.org), the world’s first LGBT industry association for construction and architecture, as part of the renovation and restoration of San Francisco’s historic Castro Theatre.
“The Castro Theatre is a cathedral to the LGBTQ communities,” said Mary Conde, Vice President for Another Planet who is in charge of the overall Castro Theatre Project. “It’s absolutely expected and appropriate that we partner with LGBTQ firms as we revitalize this irreplaceable icon for future generations. We’re thrilled to partner with BuildOUT moving forward.”
“Another Planet is the definition of a local company rooted in San Francisco and the Bay Area and sensitive to gay community and architectural concerns,” said BuildOUT founding member Paul Pendergast. “There’s a lot of work to be done and we’re thrilled that LGBTQ contractors and vendors will be at the front of the line when considered for this work.”
Often overlooked in the fields of construction, LGBT contractors are getting renewed opportunities through the work of BuildOUT and partnerships such as the one with Another Planet.
“As a lifelong San Franciscan, a member of the LGBTQ community and a Latino the Castro Theater holds a very special place in my heart,” said Nick Colina, COO of Anco Iron and Construction, a third generation San Francisco firm based in the Bayview Hunters Point. “A very special moment in my life was when I got take my mom, Dr. Colina, to the Gay Men’s Chorus on Christmas Eve where we celebrated family and our community! As a gay man in the steel industry a project like the improvements to the Castro Theater comes along once in a lifetime. To work on a building designed by Timothy Pflueger is a tradesperson’s dream.”
“To be able to provide electrical construction supplies on the historic Castro Theater project would be an honor for my LGBT-owned/certified business,” stated Sandra Escalante, CEO of Laner Electric Supply. “A building with the iconic status of the Castro Theatre deserves to have safe, reliable, state of the art electrical systems throughout. As a member of the LGBTQ community from the Philippines, my friends there had heard of the theater and have seen photographs of the Castro Theatre, it’s famous even back home. It would be an honor to work on this project.”
When the project is ready to proceed, Another Planet Entertainment will hold construction project meetings with key representatives from BuildOUT California with the express purposes of providing information outlined below:
• Project Timeline and Schedules
• Unbundled contract opportunities
• Clearly articulate any/all insurance, bonding, and pre-qualification requirements to potential subconsultants and subcontractors
• Introductions to Key Trade Subcontractors in the following areas where LGBTQ/Allied businesses with the proper qualifications, experience and capacity can actively compete for competitively bid subconsultant and subcontracting opportunities:
o Construction and Project Management
o Concrete Installations, Forms, Finishings
o Construction Materials Supplies
o Steel Fabrication
o Interior Design
o Furniture/Finishings
o Flooring
o Wayfinding and Event Signage
o Construction Safety Training and Compliance
o Quality Assurance/Quality Control
o Inspection Services
o Specialty Trades
o Advertising Specialties (branded apparel, hats, PPE wear, etc)
o Media/Public Relations and Community Engagement
Another Planet Entertainment will also consider the utilization of local, small,
LGBT/Allied/Minority businesses in the following categories where appropriate:
o Catering
o Event Planning and Production
o Public and Neighborhood Notification Services
o Graphic Design and Print Production
“We’re looking forward to working with Another Planet Entertainment to make meaningful introductions between qualified subconsultants and subcontractors who have relevant experience, qualifications and capacity to provide real value on the Castro Theatre Project,” said Pendergast, noting that Another Planet has long been committed to the LGBT community and employs many members of the LGBT community. “This is the definition of a big rainbow win.”
BuildOUT California is the world’s first LGBT Industry Association dedicated to the sustainable growth of LGBT owned & certified businesses, and our allies, in the fields of Architecture, Engineering, Construction Services, Real Estate Development, and Related Industries.
Another Planet Entertainment is partnering with Bay Properties, Inc., owners of the Castro Theatre, on an evolution and preservation of San Francisco’s world-renowned entertainment and LGBTQ community landmark. With a long-standing history of working to preserve and improve historic buildings such as the Fox Theater in Oakland, the Greek Theatre in Berkeley and the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco, Another Planet seeks to enhance the Castro Theatre by implementing significant improvements to the sound, lighting, production, HVAC and the theatre’s trademark marquee, among other facets of the building: all of this, always, with an eye to honoring its unique place in the lives of the Castro and celebrating its communities and residents.