{"id":16908,"date":"2013-06-29T14:51:19","date_gmt":"2013-06-29T18:51:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/?p=16908"},"modified":"2013-06-30T09:50:48","modified_gmt":"2013-06-30T13:50:48","slug":"annual-equestrian-event-travels-to-urban-venue","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/?p=16908","title":{"rendered":"Annual equestrian event travels to urban venue"},"content":{"rendered":"

Coatesville warehouse becomes showcase for steeplechase, \u00a0artwork<\/strong><\/span><\/em><\/h1>\n
\n

<\/strong>By Kathleen Brady Shea<\/strong><\/span>,\u00a0Managing Editor, The Times<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\"Paintings<\/a>

Paintings by Coatesville artist Dane Tilghman and steeplechase banners helped transform an aging city warehouse into an industrial chic venue for the Delaware Valley Point-to-Point Association\u2019s annual awards party.<\/p><\/div>\n

When the president of the Unionville-based Delaware Valley Point-to-Point Association (DVA) decided to hold the organization\u2019s annual awards party at a fixer-upper in Coatesville, he generated more than a few raised eyebrows.<\/p>\n

The skepticism continued as guests got their first glimpse of the behemoth brick building in the 100 block of East Chestnut Street \u2013 a view that included a police officer and plywood-covered windows.<\/p>\n

But inside the aging warehouse that once housed inventory for Lipkin\u2019s Furniture, Don Cochran had orchestrated a transformation that quickly made believers out of the audience of about 150, mainly DVA members.<\/p>\n

\"Chester<\/a>

Chester County Commissioner Terence Farrell (left) chats with Don Cochran, president of the Delaware Valley Point-to-Point Association and owner of the warehouse, which served as the venue for the DVA\u2019s annual awards party.<\/p><\/div>\n

To jumpstart the metamorphosis, Cochran had contacted Lindsay Brinton, who heads the Art Partners Studio in Coatesville. She reached out to two esteemed area artists: Dane Tilghman of Coatesville and Jeff Schaller of Downingtown, who covered the brick and concrete walls with vibrant artwork, creating a vibe reminiscent of a trendy, urban gallery scene.<\/p>\n

For Tilghman, the opportunity to showcase many of his larger than life-size acrylics side-by-side in a building rich with history was a pleasure. He said some of the places where he exhibits simply can\u2019t accommodate that scale. \u201cThis is a great space,\u201d he said, surveying the vast expanse of high-ceiled display space.<\/p>\n

Schaller, who often incorporates words and symbols into his encaustic paintings, enjoyed hanging his works on storied walls containing decades of scribbles and notations. \u201cI love the fact that there\u2019s a number 12 right here,\u201d he said, pointing above one grouping of paintings.<\/p>\n

In addition to the opportunity to admire the artwork, visitors could relive the excitement \u2013 courtesy of a large screen \u2013 of the three steeplechase events that generated the awards ceremony: Cheshire Foxhounds, Brandywine Hills, and Fair Hills.<\/p>\n

\"Artist<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a wonderful building with incredible potential,\u201d said Richard D. Buchanan, a DVA member and co-founder of Archer and Buchanan, a West Chester-based architecture firm.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Frank Reilly of Unionville, also a DVA member, agreed. \u201cYou could do a lot with this space,\u201d he said. \u201cI think people could get excited about coming here.\u201d<\/p>\n

That\u2019s exactly the reaction that Cochran, an East Fallowfield resident, said he hoped to generate after he bought the building in December. He said the purchase prompted his 96-year-old father to opine that even though he had moved his family out of Coatesville when his son was 5, apparently he didn\u2019t \u201cget the city\u201d out of his son\u2019s consciousness.<\/p>\n

Cochran said he has many positive memories of Coatesville, which he feels is on the brink of an exciting renaissance. \u201cI lived a half-block from here on Fleetwood Street,\u201d he recalled. \u201cI remember when people from West Chester came here to shop.\u201d<\/p>\n

Among Friday night\u2019s guests were Chester County Commissioners Ryan Costello and Terence Farrell and David N. Sciocchetti, the urban development consultant for the nearby train station, which is in the midst of an ambitious $20 million makeover. In brief remarks, Farrell said the commissioners have been committed to Coatesville\u2019s revitalization, but he pointed out that it needs people with Cochran\u2019s vision to succeed.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cThis building has to play a pivotal role in the redevelopment,\u201d Cochran said later. \u201cIt\u2019s the largest building in the area; it\u2019s the 800-pound gorilla \u2013 where something good needs to happen \u2026 Whether I\u2019m the developer or not is yet to be determined, but I wanted to secure it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Cochran said he\u2019s already been approached by developers but wants to wait until the train station progresses before committing to a course of action. He said if he doesn\u2019t find a developer who shares his enthusiasm for the city\u2019s potential, he could end up taking on the project himself. \u201cCoatesville is a sleeping giant. Philadelphia\u2019s moving west, and Kennett doesn\u2019t have a train station.\u00a0 West Chester doesn\u2019t, either,\u201d he said, calling the rail access an asset for businesses and residents.<\/p>\n

\u201cI could see a microbrewery downstairs with loft condos above,\u201d he suggested. \u201cThis could be a trendy, hip, urban center. A 26-year-old kid could live here and commute to Philly or Harrisburg, even New York.\u201d<\/p>\n

For Friday night\u2019s party, Cochran said he hired a police officer to stand sentry outside only because he thought it might raise the comfort level of attendees unaccustomed to the urban environment. \u201cI really don\u2019t think we needed it,\u201d he said, a sentiment shared by several city residents.<\/p>\n

Cochran said so far he\u2019s been welcomed in the neighborhood, a mix of commercial and residential real estate. \u201cThey all want to see something positive happen here,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The evening concluded with the DVA awards, which are presented annually each year to the owners, riders, and trainers who have earned points during steeplechase events.\u00a0At the end of the ceremony, former DVA president Carl Meister offered high praise for the party, which he had organized in the past. \u201cThe first time I\u2019ve seen it so successful is tonight,\u201d he said.\u00a0Asked later whether his comment might have been prompted by self-deprecation, he shook his head. \u201cI know when something\u2019s good; this was,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Coatesville warehouse becomes showcase for steeplechase, \u00a0artwork By Kathleen Brady Shea,\u00a0Managing Editor, The Times When the president of the Unionville-based Delaware Valley Point-to-Point Association (DVA) decided to hold the organization\u2019s annual awards party at a fixer-upper in Coatesville, he generated more than a few raised eyebrows. The skepticism continued as guests got their first glimpse […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":16912,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,7],"tags":[3714,1259,2553,2048,3751,3716,3717,1284,24],"class_list":["post-16908","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-featured","tag-art-partners-studio","tag-coatesville","tag-commissioners-chairman-ryan-costello","tag-dane-tilghman","tag-delaware-valley-point-to-point-association-dva","tag-don-cochran","tag-jeff-schaller","tag-terence-farrell","tag-unionville"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16908","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=16908"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16908\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/16912"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=16908"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=16908"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.unionvilletimes.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=16908"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}