RAAC Theatre should be used for the public, not offices
Iwas appalled to read in the paper that the Board of Supervisors proposes to convert our beloved old theater building (which the county owns) into temporary county offices.
The county has not revealed why it needs more office space, nor why it needs that temporary space while the new courthouse is under construction (if and when that happens). As far as I know there are no existing office facilities that will have to be destroyed and replaced when and if the new court house is built.
Further, the Board has not revealed how much turning the theater into temporary offices will cost. At the very least, the existing building would be required to install one (or possibly two) emergency exits, expansion of existing doors to accommodate handicapped users, installation of toilet facilities, possible replacement of some underground beams, repairs of the roof, insulation, and complete painting of the exterior. The board has not revealed any estimate of what all this would cost. But in any event, the county has projected that additional county offices will be included in the new court house, and that additional office space will also be included in the new building to be constructed in the new Rush River project so that we will have three times the county office space than we have now. Do we really want to pay to build that?
Wouldn't it make more sense to leave the old theater building as it is for the time being, rather than converting it to a temporary office facility? At this point, our beloved theater has moved temporarily to the former movie theater on the other side of Gay Street. But that building contains no storage space (something a theater desperately needs) nor even the space to put a piano for musicals or perhaps recitals.
The theater staff has been unable to find storage space if the old theater is no longer available ( much less where to put the piano which has been offered to RAAC free of cost).
The county's deed to the property ( March 14, 1990) clearly specifies that it may only be used for "Public Purposes." Even assuming that building additional office space is a "public purpose." There are many more desirable public purposes, like perhaps small plays at the old theater, or perhaps a concert hall, even a meeting hall. Before ignoring these possibilities, I would suggest that the Board explore them and how much it would cost to put them in place. And to the extent the community would be willing to contribute to such costs, the cost to the county would be zero.