Opinion
Being a landlord
May 8, 2008

The community now shares in ownership of the downtown movie theatre, and as such is now responsible for some cleanup and renovations.

As leaders requested in 2000, the Town purchased the theatre from the Franco-Silverberg Trust last August. The trust bought the theatre amid fears it would close, stripping the downtown of a landmark and an attraction.

When the Town Council voted at the 11th hour to stipulate that the Francos had to sell the building to the Town seven years after the agreement was executed, it decreed that renovations above a certain threshold would require Town approval. Knowing an approval process would lead to the eventual sale, that clause probably didn’t encourage a lot of work toabe done prior to 2007.

Now, in addition to anticipated renovations, the Town is also responsible for cleanup of Friday’s oil leak, and the environmental cleanup that followed. It comes with being a landlord, which is what municipal leaders wanted.

Being a landlord also means carrying the cost of empty space, which the Town is doing since the lone retail occupant of the building has moved.

 So the Town faces the same problems with which every other downtown landlord must cope. But everyone foots the bill, as it’s a municipal venture.

Town leaders have often found creative ways to address problems, and with enough work and enough votes probably could have found a way to vacate the requirement that the Town spend more than $2 million. But no one wanted to.

It would have been a better outcome for all if the building was left in private hands, allowed to be fixed and properly maintained before the price tag for the taxpayer escalated.

© Copyright 2008 by Hersam Acorn Newspapers