Should taxpayers foot the bill for Wheaton Grand's renovation?
A public hearing on a plan to help finance the Wheaton Grand Theater won't be held until later this month.
But the debate already has started over what role the city and park district should play in the proposed renovation of the 84-year-old theater in downtown Wheaton.
Several residents are questioning whether any taxpayer dollars should be risked to find out if a reopened Wheaton Grand could be a financial success. The most recent criticism came during Monday night's city council meeting.
"If this project succeeds, I personally don't see a lot of benefit for the Wheaton taxpayers," resident Ron Beran said to council members. "If this project fails, however, your decisions could cost millions of dollars in higher taxes or lost services to Wheaton taxpayers because of being unprepared to handle cost overruns, project delays or lower-than-expected revenues."
Beran made his remarks as the council agreed to host a July 27 public hearing to help decide whether to extend the life of a special service area that is the main source of revenue for the Downtown Wheaton Association.
The association, which promotes downtown businesses, wants the special service area extended for 20 more years so it could offer financial support for the Wheaton Grand project.
The boundaries of the district are roughly bordered by Illinois, West and Wesley streets and Naperville Road. Association officials claim that property owners within the district would be willing to continue paying the yearly fee if it results in reopening the historic theater along Hale Street.
The theater could open for live performances by the end of 2011 if the Wheaton Park District follows through with its plan to take ownership of the theater and borrow $19.3 million to renovate and expand the building.
However, the park district needs both the association and the city to agree to provide financial "backstop" payments of up to $250,000 a year in case the theater fails to raise enough cash for the 20 years of loan payments.
Because the association needs the special service area extended to meet that financial obligation, theater supporters said the July 27 public hearing is a vital first step.
However, Beran and others argue that the city shouldn't agree to provide any financial backstop payments until it considers what might happen if ticket sales fail to meet expectations.
"I believe that it's necessary to have a plan B in place if the reality simply doesn't meet the projections," Beran said.
Wheaton Grand supporters said feasibility studies were "conservative" in estimating the theater would attract about 300,000 visitors a year.
"Yeah, it is a belief and there are no guarantees," said Derek Bromstead, vice president of the Downtown Wheaton Association. "There was no guarantee when I started my business in downtown Wheaton. But I took that risk because I believe in Wheaton."
Bromstead said he believes reopening the theater would bring commerce and people to the downtown.
"With the talent that I've seen and the abilities of the people who are involved in this project," he said, "they are going to bring quality entertainment that people will want to go and see."