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Dayton Public Schools construction chief John Carr cited the sound absorbing panels in Stivers School for the Arts' new theater as an architectural error. The panels should reflect sound.Click to enlarge

DAYTON — When the newly renovated Stivers School for the Arts unveiled its theater in February last year, Principal Erin Dooley remarked the high school theater might some day accommodate professional shows three or four times a week.

"In this facility, the sky is the limit," Dooley said then. "It's unlike anything you'll see anywhere in the country."

Those ambitions are on hold, however, as school district officials, architects, theater consultants and others work on flaws that could cost up to $2 million to fix, problems they attribute to Jeff Wray, the architect hired for Stivers' $35 million renovation.

According to a study conducted by the Cincinnati firm Cole and Russell Architects, the theater's troubles include:

• Poor sight lines. Viewers from the balcony can't see all parts of the stage, rendering the balcony unusable; same for the last rows on the main floor.

• Poor acoustics. Ceiling and other elevated panels absorb sound instead of reflect it.

• A catwalk that sways. "This is unnerving, and a potentially dangerous situation," Cole and Russell wrote.

• An orchestra pit that isn't handicap accessible.

Cole and Russell also found building code violations involving handrails, electric power for the sound system, emergency lighting and the reflective marking stripes on aisle steps.

John Carr, construction chief for Dayton Public Schools, said the district's insurance policy should cover the cost of repairs. But he said the district expects Wray, who was paid $2.3 million for the job, to at least pay the $50,000 deductible.

Wray, a longtime Dayton architect and historic preservationist, declined comment.

"We figured they knew what they were doing and it didn't turn out so well," school board member Yvonne Isaacs said. "We are going to pursue every avenue possible to make sure the district is made whole."

Isaacs added she finds no fault with Carr, whose job in leading the district's $628 million school construction project is much broader in scope than the details of theater design.

"John has done a superior job of managing the construction project for the district," she said. "This thing I see as being really a flaw in the design, and we really would have looked to the architect to consult with an expert in acoustics and seating arrangements and incorporated those into the design."

Carr said he expects architects and the construction managers "to give us a product that meets code and all the necessary regulations."

"We should have the confidence and the faith they're doing the job we hired them for," he said.

Built in 1908 at 1313 E. Fifth St., Stivers has about 850 students in grades seven to 12 who must pass an audition of their artistic talents to be accepted into the school. The school has garnered numerous local, state and national awards, and this year was honored as one of U.S. News & World Report's best high schools in America.

"We've got some problems, and we're going to take care of them," Carr said. "These kids deserve a world-class facility."