A play for help from public funding.

Byline: Jack Moran The Register-Guard

SPRINGFIELD - The nonprofit development group that opened the Richard E. Wildish Community Theater in downtown Springfield wants a trio of local government agencies to pay off a $600,000 loan it owes to Siuslaw Bank.

If the city, the Springfield School District and the Willamalane Park and Recreation District won't donate the money, officials with the Springfield Renaissance Development Corp. say they may increase rental fees at the venue - which could lead to higher ticket prices for theatergoers.

"In order to keep the rates down, we need to have the debt gone," said Tom Draggoo, who in addition to serving as the development group's president is a Siuslaw Bank branch manager.

Draggoo said if the request for local public help is unsuccessful, the group could appeal to other potential donors before raising theater prices.

"Those three public agencies are obvious doors to knock on (for funding), because the successful operation of the Wildish theater benefits all three of them, for different reasons," he said. "If it doesn't work out with them, we'll see if there are other doors to knock on."

The development group took out the bank loan to complete the $3 million theater project in 2006. That action capped an ambitious but arduous fundraising campaign undertaken by the organization, which initially hoped to open the Wildish by 2003.

It's unclear if the three government agencies - all of which already have made significant contributions to the theater - are interested in paying off the loan.

"It's a big decision," Springfield Mayor Sid Leiken said. "The city's already stepped up quite a bit, and any time you're dealing with taxpayers' money, you have to be prudent."

Leiken said the city appreciates the community theater's value to downtown. But he points out that the nonprofit development group's request comes at a time when Springfield officials are wrestling with other important funding issues, including a question of how to pay for ongoing street maintenance.

"The City Council is kind of gun shy right now about stepping out and handing over a check for $200,000," Leiken said. "At the same time, the Wildish will be a cornerstone of downtown redevelopment. So it's a challenging position for the council to be in."

Before taking out the loan, the development group raised about $2.4 million in grants and donations to refurbish the former McKenzie Theater building at 630 Main St.

Draggoo said the goal was for the theater to open debt-free. But the group decided instead to borrow from the bank and complete the remodel to honor an agreement with the school district, which paid $100,000 in exchange for that amount of theater use, commencing with the opening of the Academy of Arts and Academics in downtown Springfield.

"It was not our first choice," Draggoo said. "It was a matter of timing. The district needed it open by September of '06 for the first day of the school year."

School board Chairman Garry Weber declined to say much about the development group's request.

"We are aware that SRDC is looking for partners to further the work of Springfield's community theater," Weber said. "I would anticipate (the school board) would have some formal discussion on the issue."

In addition to seeking public funding to retire the debt, Draggoo's organization also is proposing the creation of a new, private nonprofit group with city, school district and Willamalane participation, to oversee theater operations.

The development group always intended to turn over theater ownership to another organization after the Wildish opened.

Willamalane board President Lee Beyer said he believes that the proposal to pay off the loan with public money and to create a new organization to run the theater is worth considering.

"I look favorably on it," Beyer said. "I think the community has made a commitment to the theater, and this would be a way to jointly share Springfield's resources."

Willamalane has provided free theater management services to the Wildish since it opened.

The nonprofit theater group's board of directors includes nonelected officials of all three public agencies.

Draggoo said the theater group's principal goal is to keep theater rents low, and that's why the group asked the public agencies to help out.

While he declined to discuss terms of the loan, Draggoo said the bank is not pressuring the group to pay it off.

"Our original mission was to have the best venue at the lowest cost," he said. "That's the driving factor here. It's not the bank - it's our mission that's driving it."

The nonprofit group is making monthly interest payments on the loan, but Draggoo would not say how much is being paid.

Hourly rents at the Wildish range from $25 to $55. That's far less than what other local theaters charge. The venue has hosted everything from performances by the Oregon Mozart Players and the Eugene Concert Choir, to events such as a high school prom, an art show and city-sponsored gatherings.

John Lively, the nonprofit group's secretary, said the organization may ask the state to forgive a separate $100,000 loan the Oregon Housing and Community Services Department gave the theater in 2004 to help pay for the building remodel.

Lively said the bottom line is that it is time for the group to get out of the theater business, now that downtown has a venue bringing people into the area.

"The long-term plan has always been to turn it over to another nonprofit or party to operate it," Lively said. "We believe strongly that operations need to include public partners."