Read Online They Told Me Not to Take that Job: Tumult, Betrayal, Heroics, and the Transformation of Lincoln Center by Reynold Levy - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Reynold Levy
There are parkers who come during the day to shop. There are commuters who park at Lincoln Center and take the subway or a taxi downtown. There are monthly parkers who can’t find a space, or are on a waiting list, at their nearby co-ops or condominiums. And there are employee parkers.
Figuring out the algorithm for how to differentially set prices given all of these uses of the garage was a challenge worth seizing. We needed to maximize revenue and remain consistent with our central mission:to serve paying customers, members of Lincoln Center’s audience. And we needed to leave ample room for my ancient Mercury.
Eighth, as part of Lincoln Center’s physical redevelopment, we took a major risk and built the only freestanding restaurant in Manhattan since Central Park’s Tavern on the Green, called Lincoln Ristorante. With Jonathan Benno, the former chef of Per Se, in the kitchen, and Nick Valenti, the president of the Patina Group, as our partner, this stunning glass structure with a lawn rooftop designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro almost immediately became a campus hangout and watering hole. It serves not only pre- and post-theater diners, but also those who treat it as a destination for the evening. No fewer than one hundred thousand people enjoy lunch or dinner there annually.
The decision to build this restaurant, situated between Avery Fisher Hall and Lincoln Center Theater and facing the Paul Milstein Pool and Terrace, featuring an iconic Henry Moore sculpture, was opposed by many constituent trustees and executives. They dwelled on the restaurant’s costs rather than its benefits and pointed to past failed attempts to create commercially viable dining facilities on the campus. Now they clamor for reservations and complain bitterly when their preferred time for lunch or supper, or their favorite table, or the private dining room, is unavailable.
Financially, the restaurant brings Lincoln Center a handsome six-figure annual rent guarantee, plus a percentage of gross sales above certain million-dollar thresholds.
Ninth, plenty of attention was paid to improving annual performance in contributed income. To cite only three of many examples, when I arrived at Lincoln Center in 2002, it held two galas, one in the fall and one in the spring. They typically raised a total of $2–3 million gross. During my years of service, Lincoln Center held ten or more fund-raisers each year, including the Mostly Mozart Gala, American Songbook Gala, David Rubenstein Atrium Gala, Midsummer Night Swing Gala, Fall and Spring Gala, and special events like a celebration in honor of Ralph Lauren featuring Oprah Winfrey.
By 2010 we expected to raise from $9 million to $14 million gross from these gatherings. How much each brings in depends on the nature of the occasion, its content, and the identity of the honoree. Beyond the funds raised from any given benefit, each offers Lincoln Center thechance to befriend guests invited by gala supporters. Many who have become significant individual benefactors to Lincoln Center were first introduced to our work at special celebratory events.
Not only did the board of directors increase in size, but each newcomer was required to contribute $250,000 per year personally or through a publicly held company or privately held firm. It was also expected that within six months to a year of service on the board, a leadership pledge of $3–5 million or more to our capital campaign will be forthcoming. Typically, such pledges are redeemed over three to five years.
In 2002 trustees were contributing an average of about $80,000 annually. In 2014 forty-three trustees gave at the $250,000 level, and the average for the rest was up to $140,000. The net effect of board expansion and raising expectations for trustee giving is an increase of annual support to $20 million each year, compared to $7.9 million in 2002, leaving aside the very generous trustee gifts to the capital and endowment campaign. More than $56
Figuring out the algorithm for how to differentially set prices given all of these uses of the garage was a challenge worth seizing. We needed to maximize revenue and remain consistent with our central mission:to serve paying customers, members of Lincoln Center’s audience. And we needed to leave ample room for my ancient Mercury.
Eighth, as part of Lincoln Center’s physical redevelopment, we took a major risk and built the only freestanding restaurant in Manhattan since Central Park’s Tavern on the Green, called Lincoln Ristorante. With Jonathan Benno, the former chef of Per Se, in the kitchen, and Nick Valenti, the president of the Patina Group, as our partner, this stunning glass structure with a lawn rooftop designed by Diller Scofidio + Renfro almost immediately became a campus hangout and watering hole. It serves not only pre- and post-theater diners, but also those who treat it as a destination for the evening. No fewer than one hundred thousand people enjoy lunch or dinner there annually.
The decision to build this restaurant, situated between Avery Fisher Hall and Lincoln Center Theater and facing the Paul Milstein Pool and Terrace, featuring an iconic Henry Moore sculpture, was opposed by many constituent trustees and executives. They dwelled on the restaurant’s costs rather than its benefits and pointed to past failed attempts to create commercially viable dining facilities on the campus. Now they clamor for reservations and complain bitterly when their preferred time for lunch or supper, or their favorite table, or the private dining room, is unavailable.
Financially, the restaurant brings Lincoln Center a handsome six-figure annual rent guarantee, plus a percentage of gross sales above certain million-dollar thresholds.
Ninth, plenty of attention was paid to improving annual performance in contributed income. To cite only three of many examples, when I arrived at Lincoln Center in 2002, it held two galas, one in the fall and one in the spring. They typically raised a total of $2–3 million gross. During my years of service, Lincoln Center held ten or more fund-raisers each year, including the Mostly Mozart Gala, American Songbook Gala, David Rubenstein Atrium Gala, Midsummer Night Swing Gala, Fall and Spring Gala, and special events like a celebration in honor of Ralph Lauren featuring Oprah Winfrey.
By 2010 we expected to raise from $9 million to $14 million gross from these gatherings. How much each brings in depends on the nature of the occasion, its content, and the identity of the honoree. Beyond the funds raised from any given benefit, each offers Lincoln Center thechance to befriend guests invited by gala supporters. Many who have become significant individual benefactors to Lincoln Center were first introduced to our work at special celebratory events.
Not only did the board of directors increase in size, but each newcomer was required to contribute $250,000 per year personally or through a publicly held company or privately held firm. It was also expected that within six months to a year of service on the board, a leadership pledge of $3–5 million or more to our capital campaign will be forthcoming. Typically, such pledges are redeemed over three to five years.
In 2002 trustees were contributing an average of about $80,000 annually. In 2014 forty-three trustees gave at the $250,000 level, and the average for the rest was up to $140,000. The net effect of board expansion and raising expectations for trustee giving is an increase of annual support to $20 million each year, compared to $7.9 million in 2002, leaving aside the very generous trustee gifts to the capital and endowment campaign. More than $56
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