Sweeney Center: RIP
SWEENEY CENTER: 1955–2006
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Sweeney Center died on Feb. 27 from complications following a massive bulldozer attack. It was 51.
A memorial service held in Sweeney's honor was attended by more than 100 mostly exuberant mourners on the afternoon of Monday, Feb. 27. The event was presided over by Santa Fe Mayor Larry Delgado, who offered some fond words of remembrance to the assembled television cameras right before he tore a sizable chunk out of the roof with a heavy-duty excavator borrowed from Coronado Wrecking and Salvage.
Sweeney Center was born in Santa Fe in 1955 and spent the entirety of its life at 201 W. Marcy St. It graduated from Santa Fe High and attended the School of Hard Knocks but finished two credits shy of a degree.
The building was named after the late Raymond Patrick Sweeney, former Santa Fe Public Schools superintendent, coach and educator. It began life as a gymnasium and cafeteria on the old campus of Santa Fe High School. When it had seen more spilled Sloppy Joes and sweaty dudes in tight shorts than it could stomach, the gym was handed over to the City of Santa Fe, which rededicated the building as a convention and civic center in 1979.
Sweeney had more than its share of detractors who appeared to vehemently hate both the playa and its game. The building often was greeted with derision for its form, if not its function. An entry on Wikitravel, a branch of the Wikipedia online reference guide, fondly notes that Sweeney had "all the ambiance of a warehouse."
Truer words were never spoken. But despite its homely appearance and size limitations, Sweeney was nevertheless a cornerstone of the community for more than 50 years, hosting events big and small, sublime and ridiculous.
At one time, the Santa Fe Symphony Orchestra called the Center home as did exhibits for the city's annual Spanish and Indian Markets. In recent years, Sweeney hosted a variety of events as eclectic as the city it served. Everything from the Mascarenas wedding reception, Fernandez quinceanera and Sedillo baby shower to the Santa Fe Ski Swap, the Capital High School prom and a conference of the American Society of Limnology and Oceanography. The building harbored workshops, diversity panels and the annual Greek Festival with the same panache it hosted meetings, dances and no-holds-barred cage fighting matches. It was ground zero for seminal community events ranging from a Phish concert in 1993, a John Kerry speech before the 2004 election and county Haz-Mat training last year.
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It will be missed. Probably. At least by a couple people. Most of whom are likely named "Sweeney."
But despite its central role in community life, the Sweeney Center was never far from controversy. Attempts to raze the building and erect a sparkling new convention and civic center have been ongoing for more than 20 years. Even after the project began to gather steam in recent months, city government was forced to undergo tense negotiations with Tesuque Pueblo after preliminary excavations on the site unearthed ancient human remains. The city had initiated, killed and resuscitated several plans for a new civic center before $55 million in funding was approved at the Feb. 22 City Council meeting for a new 72,000-square-foot facility slated to open in the fall of 2007.
The move effectively pulled the plug on Sweeney once and for all. Reaction to the death has been mixed. When asked to offer recollections and historical context for the building, several people-including two state historians, two Historic Preservation Division employees and one Sweeney family member-drew a blank. The gravity of the occasion undoubtedly had left them speechless.
Former mayor and city councilor (and current City Council candidate) Louis Montaño remembers the greatness of Sweeney's namesake, if not the capabilities of the building itself. "There were a lot of community functions held there," Montaño says. "But almost from the start it was inadequate because the acoustics were not too good and also it was very small for serving as the convention center. It's served its purpose."
"I think it's a good thing," says Darlene Griego, director of the Santa Fe Convention and Visitors Bureau, whose high school graduation was held at Sweeney. "It's important to the economic development of Santa Fe and the viability of tourism."
That sentiment is echoed by Lena Sweeney, daughter-in-law of the building's namesake, though she acknowledges the famiLy still harbors a few reservations about Sweeney's annihilation.
"To a point, it is bittersweet," Lena Sweeney eulogizes. "I know we need a large convention center. The only thing that is bothering us is will the name be retained? We have a lot of people who have moved into Santa Fe that didn't know Mr. Sweeney and probably could care less. But Mr. Sweeney is a part of Santa Fe's past. He was a very nice man."
A nice man. And a sorta nice building. Pour out some liquor.
The Sweeney Center is survived by its neighbor City Hall, its son RM Sweeney Elementary School, its second cousin (twice removed) Scottish Rite Temple, its daughter Genoveva Chavez Community Center and its hotshot younger brother, the Roundhouse. Donations and remembrances can be made to the Save (Or At Least Celebrate) Ugly, But Sentimental, Buildings Foundation.
