ROGERS — A $116,345 contract to restore the parapets on the Victory Theater building, home of the Rogers Little Theater, was approved by aldermen Tuesday.
Alderwoman Marge Wolf, who was involved with the Rogers Little Theater a few years ago, said during a committee meeting Tuesday repair to the building has to be made.
“The city owns the building and we must preserve the building. It’s on the National Registry as a historic building. Being on the registry increased its value so we must restore it properly,” Wolf said.
David Hook, city facility development manager, agreed the restoration needs to be done, but he added there is no more money left in the Rogers Little Theater maintenance account.
“All the money in the maintenance account will be gone after this project,” Hook said.
Hook learned earlier this week theater officials spent about $23,000 over the past seven months on repair to the heating and air conditioning unit without the city’s knowledge.
At A Glance
Council Action
Rogers’ City Council met Tuesday and approved:
• A $45,862 contract with Consolidated Electrical Distributors for 12 light poles for the downtown area.
• Bids for towing services for the Rogers Police Department. The services are used for accidents and other times when officers need vehicles towed.
• A $346,265 contract with Franklin & Son for repair to the Police Department roof.
• A $46,715 contract for mobile vision in-car camera systems for police.
• A $21,360 contract with Fleet Safety Equipment for light bars, mount kits, LED hideaway lights and siren speakers for police vehicles.
Source: Staff Report
“I talked to officials at the theater today (Tuesday) and told them that has to stop, No more repairs can be made without city approval,” Hook said.
Ron Sasine, Rogers Little Theater chairman, said Tuesday he was please the city approved the restoration.
“I wasn’t at the meeting and I don’t think it’s appropriate for me to comment on hearsay,” Sasine said when asked about the conversation with Hook regarding the $23,000 spent without city approval Sasine said.
“We’ve been meeting with city official on a regular basis and I look forward to our next meeting,” Sasine added.
Alderwoman Betsy Reithemeyer said she wasn’t happy theater official were spending money without city approval. She agreed the building must be repaired, but the city must be aware of money spent.
Mayor Greg Hines said he’s scheduled to meet with theater officials next week regarding the lease.
The city purchased the Victory Theater in 2008 when the theater group was having financial trouble. Rogers Little Theater leases the building from the city for $1 a year.
Maintenance of the exterior of the building, to include electrical, plumbing and heating and air conditioning is the responsibility of the city.
Rogers Little Theater is responsible for the interior maintenance of the building according to an agreement.
A written agreement, outlining the details of the lease, was never signed by either party in 2008.
Hines and theater officials met last year to discuss the situation but no solution was forthcoming.
At the time of the purchase, through a fund raising effort, Little Theater officials gave the city $150,000 for building maintenance, according to city officials.
Only $57,730 remains from the original $150,000 fund. The majority of the money was spent from 2009 to 2011 repairing a faulty heating and air conditioning system.
The current issue is the parapets have pulled away from the building and are leaning, Hooks said.
The mortar between the parapets and the building has deteriorated, Hooks added, allowing water to get into the interior of the building.
About $63,623 for the parapet restoration will come from the city’s general reserve.