Can ceaseless Facebook posts save the Icehouse?
In December, we reported that the Icehouse, a performance space and art gallery in downtown Phoenix, is slated to close at the end of the year. Now, the financially ailing venue is trying to drum up revenue by blasting Facebook friends with posts about renting the Icehouse for various events.
Last week, the Facebook page for Icehouse Phoenix was filled with posts like, "Rarely seen Recording Studio! Small 2nd-floor room ready for recording equipment. Ideal for commercial or musical use," and "Tea Room-Available for small dinners or luncheons, art installations, or presentations."
We tracked down Peter Conley, the fellow responsible for the Icehouse Phoenix Facebook page, who explained why he's touting Icehouse rentals.
"If we can raise enough funds by the end of this year, the Icehouse will stay open," he says. "We're in the early stages of really pumping it, and I'm almost 50, so I'm not as savvy as I should be regarding social media and Twitter and Facebook. We have some younger volunteers who are helping with that."
But Conley's got the pitch down pat: "We have three main rooms and additional event areas. We've had so many events here. Moby and The Chemical Brothers played there, we had an event for peace there, and so many wonderful weddings. To lose the Icehouse would really be losing something special."
Conley says the space is open to all types of rentals, including corporate events, and that social media has become another way to advertise the space's availability. "We were probably too fluid and grass roots in the past," Conley says. "And our pricing is probably coming down a bit. But I tell you, everybody who comes here is just awestruck by [the Icehouse]."
