 In 1966 the usefulness of the Forest Theater was discussed at City Council during the 1966-1967 budget meetings.Discussions included whether it was cost-effective to keep the theater, resulting in an uproar by Carmelites determined to save the historic site.In 1968, to keep the Forest Theater in use, Cole Weston, who had then become the city's first Cultural Director, leased the Theater-in-the-Ground to the then-homeless Children's Experimental Theatre.