As our community grows, there have been milestones as well as setbacks, accomplishments as well as challenges. Sometimes — particularly in difficult times — it becomes more important than ever to celebrate the milestones. So I'd like to suggest we stop for just a moment and applaud the progress of the Dr. P. Phillips Orlando Performing Arts Center and the collective effort involved in moving this project forward. Recently, the board of directors approved a staging plan for construction and unveiled beautiful interior renderings of the three theaters. With groundbreaking set for the spring of 2010, this decades-long dream will come to reality.

But our work is far from over. When we begin construction next year, we will start with two of the three planned theaters. It is the third theater, the 1,700-seat multi-form theater, which will catapult this performing-arts center among the top performance venues in the country. With its ideal acoustics, it transforms space for opera and ballet to a theater for orchestra and cabaret performances. It is the jewel of the performing-arts center.

Consider that Rockefeller Center, the Empire State Building, the Hoover Dam, and the Golden Gate Bridge were all constructed during the Great Depression. Monumental things can be accomplished in trying times. The donors and supporters of the performing-arts center deserve credit for their focus, determination and tenacity to build the project. Dr. Phillips Charities and I are proud to stand with them in our commitment.

We can't lose sight of the fact that resources are still needed to complete the founding vision for this project. There are funds committed by Orange County that need to be realized sooner rather than later. There are donors who have yet to step forward and make their commitments. There are grants to be applied for; federal dollars to be accessed and many, many more opportunities ahead. But, it is imperative we get a shovel into the ground in order for these commitments to be kindled.

To this point, much of the credit for the project can be attributed to the fierce dedication of the Dr. P. Phillips Orlando Performing Arts Center's board of directors and the City of Orlando. But, it will take all of us — individuals, regional municipalities, civic groups and volunteers — to bring Orlando's most ambitious, visionary and transformational project to life. Join us. There are many celebrations still to come.

Don Ammerman of Orlando is on the boards of Dr. Phillips Charities and the Dr. P. Phillips Orlando Center for the Performing Arts.