Voters may hold key to Wheaton Grand’s future
One of the leaders of a push to pass an advisory referendum on the Wheaton Grand Theater said he understands the risk even asking the question poses.
If it fails, he said, it could abruptly end a long-running debate over whether the city should help fund renovations at the venerable theater, which has stood since 1925 on Hale Street in the heart of downtown.
If voters support the referendum, however, Friends of the Theater Committee Chairman Jim Mathieson said it could lead to restoring the facility and helping it become the center of a vibrant downtown.
“The reality is, it will not go anywhere without the referendum,” said Mathieson, a longtime Wheaton resident who has headed the group since its creation early this year.
“All I am asking here is for the momentum or, choice B is, we are going to tear it down. We are going to see the wrecking ball.”
The April 5 referendum will ask voters whether the city should use up to $150,000 a year to pay for the restoration and operation of the theater.
Mathieson said private developers have approached him with specific ideas, but they first want to see the referendum results.
Passing the referendum could clear the way for the use of $2 million in tax increment financing money which, when combined with anticipated donations, would help reach a goal of $3 million for the theater’s renovation, Mathieson said.
Mathieson said very little development has happened downtown recently without TIF money.
City council candidate Derek Bromstead agreed, and said the theater could be the impetus the downtown needs.
“It gives us options,” he said of the referendum. “If it does not pass, nothing will get built there. If the community and city are behind it, that will entice businesses to come in and develop a working plan to get that thing going.”
But the referendum also has its critics.
Council candidate Jeanne Ives said talk about a public-private partnership is disingenuous and even putting the question on the ballot is a waste of resources.
Ives said officials could have posted an online survey to find out if the theater has support. Additionally, she said TIF money could be used more effectively elsewhere.
“This is a low priority in consideration of all the other infrastructure needs the city has,” she said. “They are grasping for a solution. There are so many other things you can survey residents about and you choose this instead?”
For years, the Wheaton Grand has been at the forefront of public debate. After being shuttered for three years, Wheaton Grand Theater Corp. emerged in 2001 to reopen the venue and host various events. Political bickering between two groups in town slowed any momentum gained by restoration and renovation efforts at the time.
In November 2009, Wheaton Park District dealt another blow to the theater’s future when it backed out of a plan to borrow millions for renovations. Last summer, Grand Theater Corp. gave up its deed to the property.
Councilman Todd Scalzo, who introduced the referendum question, said asking it will once and for all give the city an idea of whether the public wants to support the theater.
“I’m just seeking the truth,” he said. “I just want the public’s opinion on this. If it turns out that they are against it, that’s OK, I will respect that.”
Ives said the referendum question remains too vague because it does not specify where the money will come from nor how long the allocation will exist.
Bob Molenhouse, another candidate running for one of two at-large council seats, added that the city should not be assisting the theater aside from helping facade improvements.
“I don’t think the city should be in the theater business,” he said. “I think anything with the theater, other than the facade, would be more in line with the mission of other entities.”
Candidate Evelyn Pacino Sanguinetti, who attended a theater fundraiser March 3, said she has heard the ideas but she will still vote against the referendum.
She said past studies that have called investment in the theater “risky” mean the city should not set aside money each year.
But a second council candidate joined Bromstead in supporting the theater because, she said, it contributes to the sense of community the downtown offers.
“People move here because there is that special something in Wheaton and the downtown has been a part of it,” Alberta Adamson said. “The theater has big potential because it could be a tourist attraction.”
The theater also has been at the center of one of the mayoral race’s biggest controversies.
Mayor Mike Gresk voted against placing the referendum on the ballot and then attended the March 3 fundraiser.
His opponent, Councilman John Prendiville, said this is an example of Gresk flip-flopping on the issue.
Gresk has said that he voted against the referendum question because the city council should have moved forward with helping the theater if it had council support.
“We get elected to make decisions,” he said. “If there was a majority in favor of this, at least to put it on the ballot, why not just put it in the budget?”
He said he supports the theater as long as the money does not come from general revenue. Instead, he said, TIF or special service area money should be used. A third option that he and Prendiville agree on would be to establish a food and beverage tax on restaurants.
“The important thing is that it become a private-public partnership,” he said. “We need a developer to come in and add a destination spot to our downtown. A revitalized theater would be the cornerstone to downtown.”
Prendiville said the $150,000 per year would be similar to an annual $100,000 allocation to the Wheaton Municipal Band.
He said TIF revenues have long been used for economic development and this expenditure would qualify.#147;The theater is our best hope for an economic engine downtown,#148; he said. #147;It will add to the culture of the city and it is also a vote for historic preservation.#148;
Prendiville has said Gresk could have showed more leadership last year when Gresk voted against the city taking ownership of the theater. Additionally, he said, Gresk#146;s criticisms that the wording is too vague could have been fixed had he proposed changes to the referendum question.
Prendiville said he is fairly confident the referendum will pass.
Meanwhile, Mathieson continues to push awareness of the ballot question. He said several options, including a rental facility, movie theater and performance theater, have been brought to the table.
Ultimately, however, he said he is trying to inform voters as well as he can leading up to April 5. #147;I am a very, #145;Either we get it done or let it die#146; kind of person,#148; he said. #147;But I don#146;t want to see the downtown worse off. We need a little momentum down there.#148;
History of the Wheaton Grand Theater
May 25, 1925 — Wheaton Grand Theater opens its doors
1930s - 1940s — Theater presents live vaudeville acts
1940s — Films also screened at the theater
Early 1990s — Building is divided into four separate second-run film theaters to increase revenue
1998 — Theater is shuttered
Oct. 19, 2001 — Wheaton Grand Theater Corp. takes ownership of the theater and starts a renovation drive
May 11, 2002 — Silent film Antony and Cleopatra screened at the theater in its reopening
2002 - 2006 — The theater hosts musical acts that range from a jazz festival to a hip-hop concert, and includes a performance by Plain White Ts, long before they become a national act
Fall 2004 — A rift develops between the theater board, who want to renovate the theater as a one-auditorium facility, and Grand Venues Inc., a promotions company that wanted it to remain a multi-theater site. The dispute reaches court in a lawsuit in October that accuses the board of unsafe work conditions and unpaid commissions. The lawsuit eventually is dismissed.
2005-2006 — The dispute gets nasty as a former theater manager criticizes the board and says the facility will become a 800-seat mausoleum before it becomes a revived theater
August 2005 — Theater listed in the National Registry of Historic Places
April 1, 2006 — Theater closes for renovations
June 2009 — Theater leaders seek $18 million for renovations. Wheaton Park District considering borrowing $19.3 million to take over and refurbish the theater.
November 2009 — Wheaton Park District scraps the plan
December 2009 — Steering committee meets for the first time to discuss future of the Wheaton Grand
July 2010 — Wheaton Grand Theater Corp. gives up deed to the facility to Suburban Bank and Trust Co. after falling about $800,000 behind in loan payments
Jan. 4, 2011 — City Councilman Todd Scalzo asks to put a referendum on the April 5 ballot. The measure passes 5 to 2 with Mayor Mike Gresk and Councilman Phil Suess voting against it
April 5, 2011 — Voters to decide whether the city should contribute up to $150,000 per year to theater renovations