Here’s to New Beginnings

Last night, Irwin Council purchased the Lamp from the Westmoreland Cultural Trust. You can read all about it here:

Brad Pedersen at the Norwin Star

Rossilynne Skena at the Tribune-Review

Michael DiVittorio at the McKeesport Daily News

Irwin Borough is the new owner of the Lamp Theatre. It’s official! ow.ly/i/1J6fv

— RelightTheLamp (@RelightTheLamp) March 21, 2013

We’re so grateful to the Irwin Council for their dedication and attention to the Lamp project, and we thank them for all their hard work, now and in the weeks and months to come. We look forward to working closely with them as we work to Relight the Lamp!

No Winter Lasts Forever

I snapped this shot this week. It didn’t look much like the first day of spring, so I took some creative liberties with it.

There’s an Irwin council meeting tonight. I may stop by. “Real estate” may or may not be discussed.

Today is the first day of spring. Here’s to many more firsts, and to new beginnings.

“No winter lasts forever; no spring skips its turn.”
― Hal Borland

Baby steps

We have some news on the Lamp! In January, Irwin Council authorized borough manager Mary Benko to get an assessment of the property. At this week’s meeting, Irwin Council authorized her to apply for a loan in the amount of $150,000, the amount that needs to be ponied up in order to “unlock” the grant money from Westmoreland County and the state.

Though I unfortunately was unable to attend this meeting myself, it was well documented: 3 different reporters wrote up accounts. From the articles:

“The motion was not on the agenda. It later was added to the order of business following a nearly hour-long executive session, during which councilors discussed real estate and personnel matters.”

“Council approved the motion 6-0 on Wednesday.…Cassandro emphasized that council is not accepting money, nor are they making a commitment to refurbishing the 1937 theater — just considering it.”

“Mike Langer, cultural trust president, said bids to rehabilitate the theater came in between $300,000 and $400,000 higher than expected, and the project stalled.”

“‘We weren’t expecting bids to come in $300,000 over our budget,’ Cassandro said. ‘But we’re worried if we don’t move, that state and county funding may not be there much longer.…’ Cassandro said council plans to continue exploring the possibility of purchasing the 72-year-old structure, making the borough the sole owner of the theater. In January, council ordered an appraisal of the property, but has not discussed it publicly.”

Cassandro said the borough remains in negotiations to purchase the property.

“Nothing has changed hands,” Cassandro said. “It’s still an option. It’s still part of what we’re doing here. It’s also a historical landmark. It’s an important part of our history.

“I don’t think putting all this money into a theater, without us owning it, is even an option right now,” Cassandro said.

“We’re working on plenty of fronts here. We’re working on financing. We’re working on acquisition of the building. We’re working on the beginnings of operating the theater. None of that may even happen.

“We’re doing things that we have to do because if you don’t have them in place they’ll never get done. We’re taking this one step at a time. We’re not at the finish line yet.”

Relight the Lamp, a group formed in 2011 of Irwin area residents dedicated to reopening the entertainment venue, remains a part in the theater’s revival, Cassandro said.

Any questions? Lots, I know. Me too. But I’m glad that we’ve taken a couple of steps forward, even if they are baby steps.

What do you think?

Photo walk

This gallery contains 10 photos.

I was out and about in downtown Irwin yesterday, and ambled by the Lamp. I took a few shots of the theatre while I was there. Enjoy!

The latest twist in the continuing saga: Irwin council considers buying Lamp Theatre

The latest on the Lamp:

“Irwin council is considering purchasing the Lamp Theatre.

“Council President John Cassandro said council is exploring the possibility of purchasing the 72-year-old structure, making the borough the sole owner of the theater.

“’It’s an option we’re exploring, and in order to do that, we have to determine the value of the building,’ Cassandro said. “This has a lot to do with getting the funding in place for this, and how quickly we have to move.”

Last week, Irwin council gave manager Mary Benko permission to spend no more than $1,000 to hire an appraiser to determine the market value of the Lamp Theatre.…

“Relight the Lamp, which is a committee of the Irwin Business & Professionals Association [Irwin Project], conducted fundraising to help offset the borough’s contribution. The group helped raise approximately $70,000 so far, according to Relight the Lamp member Kathleen Heuer.

“Heuer said the organization is excited about the possibility of borough ownership. The theater will help boost the local economy, she added.

“’A facility like this will build on the improvements Irwin has made along Main Street,’ Heuer said. ‘It will infuse the Norwin area not only with cash spent here, but with movies, music and the arts, which improve everyone’s quality of life.’

“Benko said borough officials have not discussed who would run the theatre or future involvement with the Westmoreland Cultural Trust.

“’We’re not at that point yet, since this is so preliminary,’ Benko said. ‘We can’t do anything without getting this appraisal done.

“’Even after it’s done, who knows? It could go nowhere.’”

Read the full story: http://triblive.com/neighborhoods/yournorwin/yournorwinmore/3267707-74/lamp-borough-theatre#ixzz2JZWJgFOn

Not if we have anything to say about it! Oh, and if you go to read the full article, feel free to leave a comment. Walter is not in favor of this project, apparently.

The arts have a positive economic impact on communities!

In 2010, nonprofit arts and culture organizations pumped an estimated $61.1 billion into the economy. Nonprofit arts and culture organizations are employers, producers, consumers, and key promoters of their cities and regions. Most of all the are valuable contributors to the business community.

Dinner and a show go hand-in-hand. Attendance at arts events generates income for local businesses—restaurants, parking garages, hotels, retail stores. An average arts attendee spends $24.60 per event, not including the cost of admission. On the national level, these audiences provided $74.1 billion of valuable revenue for local merchants and their communities.

The Lamp is the #1 story of the year!

The good news? The Lamp was the number one story of the year for 2012! The bad news? Read on:

1. Lamp Theatre plans stall

The Westmoreland Cultural Trust‘s work at the 71-year-old Lamp Theatre in Irwin came to a standstill after bids to rehabilitate the building came in too high in July.

Westmoreland Cultural Trust officials received bids from just two contractors to rehabilitate the theater, which came in higher than expected, according to Michael Langer, trust president.

Langer declined to reveal the cost or firms involved.

Officials estimated it would cost about $650,000 to get the theater running again, a cost that would be split between the state, county and Irwin Borough.

According to the estimate, the county and state each would contribute about $250,000 to the project to repair the structure, while the borough could contribute about $150,000 for interior work. The Trust‘s plans included 381 seats and an expanded entryway to make the building accessible to those with disabilities and compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act, Langer said.

The bid documents included plans to demolish portions of the restrooms to make way for new fixtures and partitioned, floor-mounted toilets, wall-mounted urinals and new sinks, and new cold and hot water piping.

Plans also included refinishing the floors and walls, installing new ceilings, light fixtures, doors and windows, and a new electrical system.

The final part of the project included reinforcing the stage and installing sound and lighting systems, curtains, backdrops, seats and safety devices, such as fire and smoke detectors, Langer said.

The Westmoreland Cultural Trust would own the theater and plans to run and manage the Lamp if it reopens, and it would feature between 80 and 90 performances per year.

Since the bids came in, Langer declined to discuss the project further with the Norwin Star. He said there has been no concrete decision made on the organization‘s next steps with the Lamp.

Brad Pedersen is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. He can be reached at 412-856-7400, ext. 8626, or bpedersen@tribweb.com.