Theater wants to keep community in dark

The president of the Metropolis Performing Arts Centre (MPAC) and board of directors have chosen to not allow public attendees at their regular board meetings, despite those meetings being held at Village Hall. Unfortunately, this unilateral decision by the MPAC's tenured president denies transparency and public input on a heavily tax subsidized village asset.

Let's review how the village of Arlington Heights has acquired the Metropolis Theater. The previous village president and then village board bailed out a downtown developer by acquiring this losing asset in 2005 for about $2 million in Tax Incremental Financing (TIF) funds. The C.H. Johnson Consulting Inc. analysis in November 2002 warned us that it would require an annual Village subsidy of about $150,000 per year to keep the theater afloat.

According to the village's 2023 operating budget, an annual cash subsidy of $290,000 per year, until 2028, will be needed for MPAC's operating expenses.

An estimate of village total expenditures, including the MPAC purchase price, is about $8.41 million. Also, our elected village board trustees are tasked with appointing some of the MPAC board members.

The claim that MPAC provides vital economic stimulus to downtown is, of course, false. Please consider that during the pandemic and al fresco, when the MPAC was shuttered, downtown business receipts were still near usual levels.

Additionally, MPAC school courses can be found cheaper and better at the park district or at our excellent public schools.

The answer to the question as to why theater leaders have chosen to not allow public attendance at their meetings is really quite obvious. The MPAC board does not want Arlington Heights residents to know what they are doing during their meetings.

Keith Moens

Arlington Heights