Council to decide fate of building

Lorain City Council will begin deliberating Feb. 20 the transfer of the Eagles Building, 757 Broadway, from the Lorain Palace Theater to the FireFish Festival committee.

The Council will discuss an ordinance that would allow city Safety-Service Director Daniel Given the city’s guaranty agreement on the property.

Given said the agreement originally was signed when the Ohio Facilities Construction Committee made a grant to the Palace to purchase the property.

The grant was made with the understanding the property would be used for the arts and theater in conjunction with the Palace, he said.

“The city had to sign on as the guarantor for the (grant) for the Palace, that we would guarantee that all of the objectives of the (grant) application would be met,” Given said.

By reaffirming the guaranty, the city will be doing the same for FireFish, he said.

Jeff Neal, Palace board president, said a purchase agreement for $10,000 has been signed.

Pending Council’s decision, the Palace plans to move forward with the transfer, Neal said.

He said judging from the documentation he has, when the Palace procured the building in 2009, the intention was to turn it into a cultural arts facility attached to the 1,400 seat theater, but the economic downturn at the time hindered any plans.

The Palace has not been using the property in some time, Neal said.

When asked about the seeming bargain price the FireFish is paying for the property, he said there are “underlying responsibilities of the building,” due to the original grant agreement in 2009.

“We couldn’t just sell it out on Main Street to Tom, Dick or Harry,” Neal said. “They had to be someone who was a (nonprofit organization)

and met the cultural arts facility requirements.”

According to Neal, the transfer is indicative of an increased connection between the arts festival and the Palace.

FireFish just happens to be the right group of people at the right time, he said.

James Levin, organizer of the FireFish, said the festival has some great expectations regarding the transfer, but they’re choosing to keep their vision to themselves until the sale is finalized.

“We do think it’s going to potentially have a considerable impact on the future of downtown Lorain,” Levin said. “We’re very excited about the possibility, delighted to be working with the city of Lorain. We will be making a more detailed announcement at the appropriate time.”

According to Levin, the festival currently doesn’t have the millions of dollars to completely renovate and repair the building, but they plan to aggressively raise funds.