COPIA
Encyclopedia
COPIA: The American Center for Wine, Food and the Arts was a cultural museum
and education center dedicated to the discovery, understanding, and celebration of wine
, food
and the art
s in American culture. COPIA was located in the Napa Valley
in the town of Napa, California
. The center celebrated its grand opening on November 18, 2001 and closed its doors on November 21, 2008.
COPIA was a non-profit discovery center whose mission was to explore, celebrate, and share the pleasures and benefits of wine, its relationship to food, and its significance to culture. Located in Napa Valley, COPIA offered visitors wine and food tasting programs, exhibitions, organic edible gardens, films, concerts, fine and casual dining, and shopping. Famed chef Julia Child
lent her support to the venture which featured a restaurant named Julia's Kitchen. Proceeds from ticket sales, membership and donations attempted to support COPIA's payoff of debt, educational programs and exhibitions, but eventually were not sufficient.
, his wife Margrit Biever Mondavi
, and other leaders in the wine community began to explore the idea of establishing a small institution in the Napa County
to educate, promote, and celebrate American excellence and achievements in the culinary, winemaking, and visual arts arenas.
Partner organizations – the University of California at Davis, the Cornell University School of Restaurant and Hotel Administration
, and the American Institute of Wine & Food – joined forces to develop the idea into a major not-for-profit cultural institution. In 1993, Robert Mondavi acquired the land for COPIA for $1.2 million, followed by a lead gift of $20 million. James Polshek
was hired by the foundation as the architect for the building in October 1994. Subsequently, the "Founding Seventy," key supporters from Napa Valley and the surrounding Bay Area, made substantial donations. Initial financing totaled $50 million which was leveraged against $78 million in bond debt financing prior to opening in 2001. Construction of the facility triggered a significant growth in development of a gourmet marketplace, hotels and restaurants in downtown Napa.
Although the facility did attract visitors, the local resident's support failed to materialize in the numbers expected by the founders. Original projections of attracting 300,000 admissions per year proved to be far too optimistic. In September 2008 COPIA CEO Garry McGuire announced that 24 of 85 employees were being laid off and the days of operation would be reduced from 7 to 3 per week. Attendance figures had never reached either original or updated projections, causing the facility to operate annually in the red since its opening. McGuire announced that the property would be sold due to unsustainable debt. COPIA "temporarily" closed in late November 2008 with approximately $80 million in debt, and then filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on December 1. The federal bankruptcy court blocked a $2 million emergency loan with priority in security leaving COPIA with no funds to resume operations. Consequently, the organization announced it was closing its doors for good.
Following the 2008 closing of COPIA, a group of investors, developers, advocates, and vintners named The Coalition to Preserve Copia was formed to explore a plan to preserve the building and grounds. Part of the group's plan included forming a Mello-Roos
district with participation of local hotel properties to finance bonds to purchase the property but their effort failed. In May 2009 local developer George Altamura spoke about his interest in purchasing the property. Other developers including The Culinary Institute of America have also expressed an interest in acquiring the property including The Culinary Institute of America.
COPIA's bond holder; ACA Financial Guaranty Corporation listed the property for sale in October 2009.
In the period following the closing of the center, the iconic copper pots and pans belonging to Julia Child were removed from the restaurant named after her and sent to the Smithsonian Institution's
National Museum of American History
and are included in the Julia Child's kitchen
exhibit. Napa Valley College's
upper valley campus will soon be the home of the center's library of over 1000 cookbooks and more than 3500 bottles of Copia's wine collection are still stored in the building's wine cellar. Local chefs have recently revived the center’s garden and the parking lot is the location of a weekly farmer's market.
The Design Architect of the original COPIA project was Polshek Partnership Architects; Architect of Record was Fong & Chan. The Landscape Architect was Peter Walker & Partners. Auerbach Consultants provided theatre consulting and COPIA's interior and architectural lighting design.
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
and education center dedicated to the discovery, understanding, and celebration of wine
Wine
Wine is an alcoholic beverage, made of fermented fruit juice, usually from grapes. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, or other nutrients. Grape wine is produced by fermenting crushed grapes using various types of yeast. Yeast...
, food
Food
Food is any substance consumed to provide nutritional support for the body. It is usually of plant or animal origin, and contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals...
and the art
Art
Art is the product or process of deliberately arranging items in a way that influences and affects one or more of the senses, emotions, and intellect....
s in American culture. COPIA was located in the Napa Valley
Napa Valley AVA
Napa Valley AVA is an American Viticultural Area located in Napa County, California, United States. Napa Valley is considered one of the top wine regions in the United States...
in the town of Napa, California
Napa, California
-History:The name Napa was probably derived from the name given to a southern Nappan village whose people shared the area with elk, deer, grizzlies and cougars for many centuries, according to Napa historian Kami Santiago. At the time of the first recorded exploration into Napa Valley in 1823, the...
. The center celebrated its grand opening on November 18, 2001 and closed its doors on November 21, 2008.
Summary
Julia Child
Julia Child was an American chef, author, and television personality. She is recognized for introducing French cuisine to the American public with her debut cookbook, Mastering the Art of French Cooking, and her subsequent television programs, the most notable of which was The French Chef, which...
lent her support to the venture which featured a restaurant named Julia's Kitchen. Proceeds from ticket sales, membership and donations attempted to support COPIA's payoff of debt, educational programs and exhibitions, but eventually were not sufficient.
History
In 1988, vintner Robert MondaviRobert Mondavi
Robert Gerald Mondavi was a leading California vineyard operator whose technical improvements and marketing strategies brought worldwide recognition for the wines of the Napa Valley in California. From an early period, Mondavi aggressively promoted labeling wines varietally rather than...
, his wife Margrit Biever Mondavi
Margrit Mondavi
Margrit Biever Mondavi is Vice President of Cultural Affairs at Robert Mondavi Winery. A pioneering woman of the modern-day California wine industry, she joined the winery in 1967, pursuing a life-long interest in uniting wine with fine arts, music and culinary artistry...
, and other leaders in the wine community began to explore the idea of establishing a small institution in the Napa County
Napa County, California
Napa County is a county located north of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is coterminous with the Napa, California, Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010 the population is 136,484. The county seat is Napa....
to educate, promote, and celebrate American excellence and achievements in the culinary, winemaking, and visual arts arenas.
Partner organizations – the University of California at Davis, the Cornell University School of Restaurant and Hotel Administration
Cornell University School of Hotel Administration
The School of Hotel Administration at Cornell University is a specialized business school for hospitality management founded in 1922 as the first four-year intercollegiate school devoted to the field...
, and the American Institute of Wine & Food – joined forces to develop the idea into a major not-for-profit cultural institution. In 1993, Robert Mondavi acquired the land for COPIA for $1.2 million, followed by a lead gift of $20 million. James Polshek
James Polshek
James Stewart Polshek is an American architect based in New York City. He is the founder of Polshek Partnership, the firm at which he was Principal Design Partner for more than four decades...
was hired by the foundation as the architect for the building in October 1994. Subsequently, the "Founding Seventy," key supporters from Napa Valley and the surrounding Bay Area, made substantial donations. Initial financing totaled $50 million which was leveraged against $78 million in bond debt financing prior to opening in 2001. Construction of the facility triggered a significant growth in development of a gourmet marketplace, hotels and restaurants in downtown Napa.
Although the facility did attract visitors, the local resident's support failed to materialize in the numbers expected by the founders. Original projections of attracting 300,000 admissions per year proved to be far too optimistic. In September 2008 COPIA CEO Garry McGuire announced that 24 of 85 employees were being laid off and the days of operation would be reduced from 7 to 3 per week. Attendance figures had never reached either original or updated projections, causing the facility to operate annually in the red since its opening. McGuire announced that the property would be sold due to unsustainable debt. COPIA "temporarily" closed in late November 2008 with approximately $80 million in debt, and then filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on December 1. The federal bankruptcy court blocked a $2 million emergency loan with priority in security leaving COPIA with no funds to resume operations. Consequently, the organization announced it was closing its doors for good.
Following the 2008 closing of COPIA, a group of investors, developers, advocates, and vintners named The Coalition to Preserve Copia was formed to explore a plan to preserve the building and grounds. Part of the group's plan included forming a Mello-Roos
Mello-Roos
The Community Facilities District Act was a law enacted by the California State Legislature in 1982. The name Mello-Roos comes from its co-authors, Senator Henry J. Mello and Assemblyman Mike Roos...
district with participation of local hotel properties to finance bonds to purchase the property but their effort failed. In May 2009 local developer George Altamura spoke about his interest in purchasing the property. Other developers including The Culinary Institute of America have also expressed an interest in acquiring the property including The Culinary Institute of America.
COPIA's bond holder; ACA Financial Guaranty Corporation listed the property for sale in October 2009.
In the period following the closing of the center, the iconic copper pots and pans belonging to Julia Child were removed from the restaurant named after her and sent to the Smithsonian Institution's
Smithsonian Institution
The Smithsonian Institution is an educational and research institute and associated museum complex, administered and funded by the government of the United States and by funds from its endowment, contributions, and profits from its retail operations, concessions, licensing activities, and magazines...
National Museum of American History
National Museum of American History
The National Museum of American History: Kenneth E. Behring Center collects, preserves and displays the heritage of the United States in the areas of social, political, cultural, scientific and military history. Among the items on display are the original Star-Spangled Banner and Archie Bunker's...
and are included in the Julia Child's kitchen
Julia Child's kitchen
Julia Child's kitchen is an historic artifact on display on the ground floor of the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History: Kenneth E. Behring Center, located in Washington, D.C., on the National Mall...
exhibit. Napa Valley College's
Napa Valley College
Napa Valley College, formerly known as Napa Community College, is one of California's community colleges, located in Napa Valley. The main campus is in Napa, California, with an Upper Valley Campus in St. Helena and a Small Business Development Center in downtown Napa. In 2004-2005, the total...
upper valley campus will soon be the home of the center's library of over 1000 cookbooks and more than 3500 bottles of Copia's wine collection are still stored in the building's wine cellar. Local chefs have recently revived the center’s garden and the parking lot is the location of a weekly farmer's market.
Facilities
COPIA included 13000 square feet (1,207.7 m²) of gallery space for exhibitions of art and culinary history and science; a 260-seat theater for films and lectures; a rare-books library; classrooms with audio-visual capabilities; a 74-seat demonstration kitchen forum; a gourmet dining room named for honorary trustee Julia Child, which featured a dramatic open finishing kitchen; a tasting table with an expansive selection of wines from across the United States; a 700-seat outdoor concert terrace; a café; a museum gift shop; and three and one-half acres of landscaped organic edible gardens for hands-on learning about soils, farming, and viticulture. There was also ample parking in two parking lots with a total 341 parking spaces.The Design Architect of the original COPIA project was Polshek Partnership Architects; Architect of Record was Fong & Chan. The Landscape Architect was Peter Walker & Partners. Auerbach Consultants provided theatre consulting and COPIA's interior and architectural lighting design.