The City Farm Chehalis building is seen Saturday afternoon in downtown Chehalis.
Scott Forsman talks about the history of the building which now houses the City Farm event center Saturday afternoon in downtown Chehalis.
Scott Forsman talks about the history of the building which now houses the City Farm event center Saturday afternoon in downtown Chehalis.
The 'Pinterest Room' is seen inside the City Farm event center building Saturday afternoon in downtown Chehalis.
Vintage art is seen on the inside of the City Farm event center building Saturday afternoon in downtown Chehalis.
Scott Forsman talks about the history of the building which now houses the City Farm event center Saturday afternoon in downtown Chehalis.
Scott Forsman talks about the history of the building which now houses the City Farm event center Saturday afternoon in downtown Chehalis.
A chandelier hangs from the ceiling of the City Farm event center Saturday afternoon in downtown Chehalis.
City Farm Chehalis is a bit like Art Deco meets the Wild West.
During ChehalisFest, Hank Williams’ song “Hey Good Lookin’” played in the background while folks wandered into the two-story building to explore the event center, peruse an abundance of artifacts and talk to the mastermind behind the building.
Scott Forsman acquired the former St. Helens Theatre in downtown Chehalis 13 years ago. Since then, he has worked to rehab the building and turn it into an event center. The building is filled with various depictions of the Phoenix — the mythological bird that ignites itself and rises from its own ashes.
“The Phoenix is our symbol of the building and the original Phoenix paintings are upstairs,” Forsman said. “It’s an old building rising from its ashes.”
Payette Still is one of two painters who have worked to restore the original artwork upstairs and added new paintings to various parts of the building, including the women’s bathroom and the floor.
“We are complete opposite painters, which is fabulous because whatever I can’t do or she can’t do, the other one can do,” Still said. “So we collaborate really well together...I have really enjoyed myself and I got my artistic freedom to kind of do what I do best. It’s just been a blast. I’ve really enjoyed it.”
At the very least, the Forsman’s style could be described as eclectic. However, that seems a bit mundane for City Farm Chehalis.
“When you walk in the building, one of the cool things we did is the tile work in a serpent line,” Forsman said of the entrance. “That’s a Scandinavian tradition where you would block evil spirits from coming in. Then, of course, the mirror is there so you can check your soul on your way out.”
Forsman said that many of the artifacts in City Farm Chehalis came from palaces that were torn down in India. Forsman bought the artifacts from a man he knew in Los Angeles, who essentially liquidated his home before moving to India permanently.
“I filled up three semis with all this stuff and then I brought it in one at a time,” Forsman said. “A lot of it has been sitting here for years. A lot of people that have visited here in the past are just like ‘whoa’ because it’s all cleaned up, finally. It’s no longer a junk pile.”
When Forsman began discussing essentially any piece of his new event center at his open house, people flocked to hear. Forsman plans to hold City Farm Chehalis’ grand opening on Aug. 25, with a reception from 5-7 p.m. and music from 7-9 p.m.
“There will be a lot more fine tuning,” Forsman said of the time between his open house and the grand opening. “There’s molding, and there’s curtains and the green room downstairs will be done. The bathrooms will be trimmed out and those types of things. The bar will be put in. Hopefully those things will all be done. If not, we’ll just keep working on it.”
Forsman said people have already enquired about booking the venue.
“It’s just a big art project and you just start getting addicted to it,” Forsman said. “You keep going, and going, and going and then you just keep wanting to build and keep creating. Hopefully I will be finished with it soon.”
