Downtown Geneva may get theater troupe

Maybe the First Street Playhouse will become the Sixth Street Showcase.

The city of Geneva is reviewing plans for basement space at 524 W. State St., at the corner of Sixth Street, to be turned into a small theater.

First Street executive director Eric Schwartz is leery of confirming that First Street would move into the space, until the city approves a special-use permit for the project. But the building's owner, Joe Stanton, and a city planning spokesman said the tenant would be First Street, which used to have a theater in an old factory building on First Street in Batavia.

The space would seat 80 to 100 people.

The building houses Urban Grille restaurant, a hair salon and a furniture store on its first floor, and offices on its second. Urban Grille has a banquet facility and kitchen in the basement. There are handicapped-accessible restrooms, an elevator, and air conditioning.

"We wanted to find a space where we could keep the overhead a little lower," said Schwartz. Heating and cooling bills in the factory space were expensive, he said.

The troupe has been looking for a new home for several months and looked to the Geneva Cultural Arts Commission for help.

"We really want to be integrated into the Geneva community," Schwartz said. The theater intends to take on a new name reflecting its new location, he said. And it plans to have a murder-mystery fundraising dinner at Urban Grille later this month.

A special-use permit is needed to open a theater in the business district. The Geneva Plan Commission will likely consider the matter at its August meeting. It could be debated by the city council committee of the whole later in August and voted on in September.

"If the city approves, it would be a great use," Stanton said.