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Thursday, March 28
The Indiana Daily Student

arts

Local theater receives grant, avoids closing

Buskirk-Chumley to use money to pay operating expenses

The Buskirk-Chumley Theatre is deeply in the red.\nBut things seem to be on the upswing.\nThe publicly funded Indiana Arts Commission has extended $68,000 in grant money it had previously withheld, citing the absence of a financial plan. The money will cover operating expenses.\nThe commission refused disbursement of the grant in September because the Bloomington Area Arts Council was unable to prove it could handle the theater's financial woes. But just last week, the council was restructured. It adopted the interim strategic plan recommended by an ad hoc committee appointed by the mayor. \n"The receipt of these funds will assist the BAAC in maintaining operations while the study commission works on a long-range financial and organizational solution for the BAAC and the Buskirk," said city councilman Jeffrey Willsey, interim Bloomington Area Arts Council board president. "The funds will be used for staff, operating expenses and other purposes as stipulated under the grant."\nChaired by Indiana Court of Appeals Judge Ted Najam, the committee recommended the management of the Buskirk-Chumley Theatre be separated from the arts council. The not-for-profit arts council also runs the John Waldron Arts Center, 122 S. Walnut St., a popular venue for local theater and visual art. Najam raised concern over the possibility that the mounting debt would swallow up the Waldron as well. \nThe Bloomington Area Arts Council board approved the hiring of Sally Gaskill as interim executive director, IU Auditorium General Manager Bryan Rives as its interim theater manager and Willsey as interim president of the board. \n"Sally is well-known as a professional in community arts development and administration," Najam said. "We in Bloomington are very fortunate that she lives here and has agreed to help us chart a course in the future." \nGaskill said she plans to draw up a strategic plan with measurable goals based on input from donors and board members. Within six months, she hopes to have the problem resolved.\nWith a master's degree in art management, Gaskill served as executive director of the Arts and Culture Council for Rochester, N.Y. for seven years. She moved to Bloomington after her husband, Massimo Ossi, accepted a position with the School of Music this fall.\nMeanwhile, the commission is working on its own plan for financial solvency. The arts council board has taken it on as a formal adviser.\n"I am extremely pleased with the progress the study commission has made in such a short amount of time," said Mayor John Fernandez, who appointed the ad hoc committee in September. "I am also grateful to the Indiana Arts Commission for acknowledging the efforts being made to assist the BAAC and releasing the grant funds."\nFernandez took action once it became clear that the Bloomington Area Arts Council was having a hard time climbing out of debt. The Kerasotes movie chain donated the theater on the condition that it not screen films.\nIt embarked on a $3 million renovation project, restoring the original balcony that had been closed off when Kerasotes added an upstairs screen, among other interior improvements. With major donor support, the arts council paid off $2 million. But the stream of donations dried up.\nDuring a summer stretch without much programming or revenue, the situation went from bad to worse. The arts council failed to meet financial obligations, such as payroll and loan payments. It cut full-time staff by half, even eliminating executive positions.

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