Vashon Island School District and Vashon Allied Arts face an interesting opportunity — one that didn’t exist, quite in this form, until two weeks ago.

That’s when the school district unveiled a new plan for the rebuild of Vashon High School — a design change that would transform the school’s auditorium, currently tucked inside Building A, into a free-standing structure.

According to rough sketches, the new auditorium would sit in a prime spot — next to the school’s soon-to-be-established main entrance and immediately adjacent to its expansive parking lot. A school auditorium — but also something more: A lovely, decently outfitted 275-seat theater for school plays and community theater, similar to the school’s current auditorium, though considerably better.

Meanwhile, a mere half-mile away, Vashon Allied Arts hopes to soon embark on its own construction plan, erecting a new performing arts center surrounded by its own expansive parking lot. It, too, will serve the community, offering up a venue for theater, music and more.

Here’s where the opportunity comes in: What if the two joined forces, building a state-of-the-art performance complex at the high school that served the needs of the high school, VAA and, for that matter, the entire community? 

What if the structure contained two stages — a big one and a small one — for the different types of performance needs on the Island? What if one parking lot served both? If bathrooms and green rooms could be shared? If an economy of scale could be achieved, saving both entities money, time and resources?

There are plenty of reasons to not attempt such a vision. First and foremost, VAA is already well on its way in the design of its new performance theater. To change course now would be difficult. What’s more, both the development and operation of a shared structure would add a new layer of complexity. How would the financing work? The maintenance? Where would primary responsibility lie? In other words, it wouldn’t be easy. 

And yet, on its face, it seems to make so much sense. Indeed, it’s a compelling and exciting idea, an opportunity to build the kind of performing arts center some want on Vashon but in a way that the Island just might be able to support and sustain over time.

It would save money. It would be gentler to the environment. It would be civic-minded in the truest sense of the phrase. Instead of each institution having its own complex, the Island would share one that could fulfill a variety of needs. 

There’s a lot of talk about sustainability. And a lot of talk about public-private partnerships.

With a touch of humility, we at the Beachcomber offer this up as a vision and challenge to those who are in the throes of building significant structures that will shape the Island’s landscape for decades to come.