Long Center: Countdown to opening and beyond

Summer may have been a lazy season in some corners, but not at the Long Center, which has been abuzz with construction activity on the southern shores of Lady Bird Lake and where some hefty new gifts have been landing in the performing-arts center's coffers. On Aug. 1, 3M Foundation announced a new $1 million gift to the center – this on top of a $500,000 pledge made five years ago. (That makes 3M the Long Center's largest corporate donor now.) Two weeks after that, Novare Group Holdings LLC and Andrews Urban LLC (Novare/Andrews Urban), developers of 360, the 44-story condominium tower under construction at Third and Nueces, pledged $250,000 to the center. That brings the Long Center capital campaign up to almost $81 million in pledges (nearly $4 million over the campaign's $77 million goal).

With the Long Center's grand opening now a mere seven months away – circle March 28-30 in red on your calendar if you haven't already – the center is currently accepting rental applications for its premiere season, April 2008 to August 2009. This goes for not only performances but also meetings and other nonperformance functions. You can take your pick of the 2,400-seat Dell Foundation Hall, the flexible "black box" Rollins Studio Theatre, the 30,000-square-foot outdoor City Terrace facing Downtown, the Kodosky Donor Lounge, and the AT&T Education Rooms. Programming director Tammie Ward says that you can find venue floor plans and rental guidelines under "facility rental" on the Long Center website. For more information, visit www.thelongcenter.org.