City Council Works To Find Possible Fundings For Theater

Should the City of Neligh purchase the New Moon Theater? Where would the funding for operation come from? Those questions were heavily discussed during the Neligh City Council Meeting last week.

Neligh City Council Member Leonard Miller said he initially thought a nonprofit LLC to buy and manage it would be best, but then heard there would possibly be more grants if it was city-owned. However, the grants would have to be matched.

“And so, since then, Gabe did some work on the grants, and it looks like all the grants are matching,” Miller said. “And, my thought process was that from the city’s viewpoint, I wouldn’t want the city to put any money in it or be responsible for making it work financially. I think if we want to do it, we want it to be volunteer.”

Steinmeyer recommended a 501(c)(3), which would exempt it from federal income tax and make it eligible to receive tax-deductible donations, as the ideal option if available.

“If there’s no other option, the city could raise some funds, and there are outside funding sources available,” Steinmeyer said. “If the city were to own it, there are more outside funding sources available if it was owned by a nonprofit. And some of those funding sources are not matched; it does not require a match.”

According to Steinmeyer, the first funding source would be the Tourism Development CDBG (Community Development Block Grant) program, which he said is mostly there to provide ADA upgrades. Steinmeyer also said they could work with the Nebraska Department of Economic Development to access more funding through with a 25 percent match.

Since the recommendation is a 501(c)(3), the Neligh City Council didn’t need to make a motion.

“We’re saying we’re not asking the city for anything, and we think it should stand on its own,” Miller said.

When discussing expenses, Steinmeyer said he was given rough estimates by contractors, but he has not had a specific conversation as to the exact costs of refurbishing and renovating New Moon Theater.

Miller said that when he toured the theater, the main roof is better than expected, but the front part of the building is in poor condition.

According to Steph Wanek, there was a decent amount of mold in the lobby, but it doesn’t matter since it’s on panelling that will likely be ripped out. Wanek also said the front part of the theater smells, but it is not musty by the theater seats, which she believes could be refurbished.

“We think that we could refurbish them; that was our hope because they have so much character,” Wanek said.

The theater also comes with a complete snack bar, including a popcorn machine that appears to be new.

In additional matters, council members spoke about whether a sprinkler system would need to be installed or not, since the building is under 10,000 square feet. However, they concluded the theater must first be purchased before they can be concerned with further details.