The only thing “killing” the Town Theatre project is rumor and speculation, not the town administration, according to members of the Town Council.
Councilman Dan Vassar, D-3, said the council is waiting on the Redevelopment Commission to meet to decide which architectural and engineering firm will take on restoring the closed movie theater as well as making it compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Estimates will include replacing the roof, he said, which has always been a consideration in the plans.
Council members were aware of the need for replacing the roof since at least August 2014, when an architectural firm made a presentation, Vassar said. Replacing the roof alone is estimated to cost about $100,000, he saidThe three firms under consideration are Morris Architects Planners, Wheeler Kearns Architects and Bauer Latoza Studio, Vassar said.
The funding mechanism hasn’t changed for the theater, either, Vassar said.
The original cost estimate from architectural firm VOA was approximately $1.9 million, which included the roof, audio-visual equipment and furnishings. When the council voted in October 2014, the estimate given was between $1.8 million and $2.5 million to be funded via the City of Hammond’s repayment of the bond used to demolish Kennedy Avenue Apartments in Hammond’s Hessville section; Tax Increment Financing and a new bond, Vassar said.
Once the commission has chosen the firm and has an accurate cost estimate, the council will either approve or deny the bid, and the commission will either move ahead or need to retool the plans. But the project has not been killed, Vassar said. Until then, he wishes people would stop with the rumors.
“There has been a great deal of speculation and rhetoric out there that has not been factual or helpful to the process,” he said. “It might not be moving as quickly as people might want, but no one has stopped anything, and I think it’s very important to respect the process and the people involved.”
Town Theatre Board President Bridget DeYoung resigned her post earlier this month. In an email obtained by the Post-Tribune, DeYoung told the council Nov. 13 that she would not be participating in a fund-raising event for the theater that night because “The Council led people to believe (the town) was going forward with this project.”
“Business owners are calling me as to why they are investing in this type of event when people from Town Hall are saying the Theatre project is over,” DeYoung wrote. “I am referring them to the Town Council.”
She did not return a call seeking comment.
Council President Mark Herak, I-2, voted against the project in October 2014, as did the late Dennis Adams. That said, his vote then doesn’t mean he’s now declared the project dead, either.
“I have high hopes that by the beginning of next year, we will be able to sit down and rationally discuss options for the project; the only option presented so far will not produce or become the project we need it to be,” Herak said. “There is no time limit as to when a project could be re-presented to the council. In this case, if it is shot down, that area, the theater and the two buildings just purchased need to be developed, so I would hope that we all would sit down rationally and figure out what’s best for that location. Maybe a theater with a different footprint, rather than renovating, is it less expensive to start new and save the marquee.”
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Vassar said he hopes tensions settle down and momentum for the project can resume.
“To see how many people were here in the summer of 2014 and then again for the October vote, the theater was a great unifier for the town, and now that’s been destroyed,” he said. “Our Town Theatre Board and Highland Main Street are essentially volunteers who have dedicated themselves to trying to make Highland a better community, and I appreciate and respect all of their volunteer efforts on behalf of our community.”
Michelle L. Quinn is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.