but hancher executive director chuck swanson "it's making a difference in people's lives, and building new audience, we're always trying to change people's lives. " swanson says enriching lives is the mission of hancher. and here -- having a job is a big step towards rehabilitation. "our whole goal is to train offenders, teach them skills, so when they get released they can find jobs, keep jobs, be successful and "here i think we're making a difference in their lives, but i think they also feel like they're making a difference in other people's lives now. " "i like making people feel better, but to know that something i made they're wearing, it makes them feel better about themselves, and it makes us feel better to know we did such a good job for them. " swanson says he hopes someday -- some of the women of mitchellville will get out and come attend a show. but even for they'll always know-- they played a role on the big stage. "a year or two from now they'll see hancher on the news for having a great event there, and they may see a glimpse of their jackets, and they'll be able to say,

a longtime hancher employee and executive director chuck swanson also talked about the thought process for every detail. swanson said he hopes hancher auditorium will people. "1:12 building new audience, we're always trying to find new audience and we're always trying to find and use the arts as a way to change people's lives. " if you can't make it to tomorrow's open house, there's another one two to five sunday afternoon. and we've put all of our hancher stories from this morning's newscast onto our website, kcrg dot com. one couple is traveling from colorado to try to find a way to save an aging bridge near monticello. demolish the crumbling bridge and build a new one. we'll have a live report from vets memorial stadium with a preview of the kernels play-off game. stay with tv9. "i really just want it preserved of ten stone bridges still in regular use in iowa. but should county leaders keep or should it just replace the bridge with something new? ely's stone bridge is just northwest of monticello. the name comes from the family that built it by hand in 1893. only about 240 vehicles

hancher executive director chuck swanson told us about the lengthy thought process that went into designing the house. the experience here at the new hancher. chuck, how many seats are there - what's your capacity for a show? c: 1800. and the orginal hancher had 2,500 seats. and we discussed this a lot. at one point we talked about 2,100. but then we finally decided on 1800. when we decided on 1800, the architect said we hit a sweet spot architectually, asthetically and acoustically. and nicole, i sit in here and i couldn't be more happy. n: seafoam green seating, the seats themselves are comfortable and you've got lights to really add to the experience as well. c: i've got to tell you, choosing the seat was probably one of the more difficult decisions to make. because everyone has such a personal preference. we looked at seats for a long, long time and we finally just said, that's the seat. and i'm so glad with what we ended up with. and the aisles - there's so much room. and i have to say, and i mean it from the bottom of my heart, every seat in this house is going to be a good seat. you'

low: 57 now, let's go back to chris and nicole on the main we're joined now by chuck swanson he's hancher's executive director. chuck, this is new building is of course such a game changer for you and all of the hancher staff. can you tell us what this new auditorium means for the future of a lot of ways, we saw the spirit of hancher carry through as performances travel around the state. do you think it made the program stronger? what's possible now that wasn't possible even before with old hancher? still ahead, we're touring give the auditorium an incredible amount of flexibility. you're watching kcrg-tv9. now, y23puy y12fy from your 24 hour news source, this is kcrg-tv9 news early morning news. for those of you just joining us, we're here live at hancher for an all-access preview of for those of you just joining us, we're here this newly constructed building. we're touring all around the new hancher built after the 2008 flood destroyed old hancher meteorologist kaj o'mara is with us this morning for a look at what people can expect weather-wise today. plan on the rain to exit the area ver

we had executive director chuck swanson take us through the lobby -- a part of hancher that will be well worth your time. chris: so as people first walk into hancher auditorum, chuck, their eye is drawn there right. can you tell us a little bit more about what it is and what it represents? by a west african artist, ellena suey is his name and he's actually a professor in west africa. it's the result of the iowa state and art buildings law that, when construction happens, we spent 0.5% of the construction budget on visual art. to 1:03 this is a piece of art that is tied togth of copper wire. ellena suey, just two years ago, got the golden lion award in venice, which is artist of the world. take a look at it, the colors go so well in the lobby of the building. we really wanted to, as a team, really have everybody experience, have a wonderful experience before they even go in the theatre, to see what's on stage. we have our showcase, our gift store.. 5:17, all the profits go to arts education. so much thought went into the box office to accessibility. . i love the frontage of that, the nigh