Worthington City Council gets Memorial Auditorium preview
Facility will offer link to city's historyWORTHINGTON — Renovations at Memorial Auditorium and Performing Arts Center have been under way since June 1, 2010. The new auditorium exhibits many modern improvements, but it will also embrace part of Worthington’s demolished history, with the new building featuring several limestones salvaged from the former Central Elementary building.
- Auditorium
WORTHINGTON — Renovations at Memorial Auditorium and Performing Arts Center have been under way since June 1, 2010. The new auditorium exhibits many modern improvements, but it will also embrace part of Worthington’s demolished history, with the new building featuring several limestones salvaged from the former Central Elementary building.
Two stones have been installed on the west wall of the auditorium addition, and three stones will be on display on a wall located in front of the restrooms.
“I like them,” said Mayor Alan Oberloh of the limestones during an auditorium tour prior to Monday’s Worthington City Council meeting. “They add character to the place. They’re no different than the wall with the original wallpaper at the Dayton House.”
On Monday, council members approved a proposal to clean the limestone pieces installed, with the contingency that the cleaning process keeps the historical aspect of the stones intact.
“You can over-restore an antique,” Oberloh added. “The reason we put it in there was to commemorate what we had in 1936, not to make it look like it was from 2011.”
The grand reopening of Memorial Auditorium is slated for March 15. Tickets go on sale today.
In other business, the council Monday:
l Approved a request by Friends of the Auditorium Inc. for a 120-day, interest-free loan from the city. Because of the renovations, Memorial Auditorium is unable to financially proceed with the grand reopening until ticket sales will pay for the artist contracts’ deposit of $15,000 for Larry Gatlin and the Gatlin Brothers, which is due by March 9. The loan will be repaid in full by June 3.
l Approved the proposed change of control of Mediacom Minnesota LLC from a publically held company to the sole ownership of Rocco Commisso or JMC Communications LLC.
l Awarded a contract for the Millard Walker Park restroom project to Clair Van Grouw Construction for $62,150. Only two bids were received, and the city accepted the lower bid.
l Declined the Airport Advisory Board’s request to reconsider the 2011 annual hangar lease rate. The previous annual rate of $360 was increased to $500 this year.
Many lessees did not believe the increase was justified because of the age of the hangars and the doors’ inaccessibility during the winter months. Several council members mentioned the funds invested in insuring the building, the cost of snow removal and the discount lessees receive when the lease rate is paid in full. Council members unanimously agreed the 2011 rate was reasonably priced.
l Approved the change to the airport fueling improvement project for additional work as a result of laborers encountering difficulties while excavating for the new 12,000-gallon fuel tank.
The change order will be used to cover the additional labor, equipment and materials that went into completing the excavation. Council voted that the amount not exceed $16,759.50 with the city’s 50 percent matching monies of $8,379.50. The funds will be derived from the hospital impact funds.
l Considered the petition for the surfacing of 27th Street, 29th Street and North Rose Avenue. The surfacing improvement was also petitioned in 2009 but was not approved. Because council did not unanimously vote to resurface the road, the mayor voted to proceed with a project hearing. Two council members were also assigned to meet with property owners in an effort to reach a compromise. The mayor and city engineer, Dwayne Haffield, will also be involved in the upcoming discussions.
Tags: memorial auditorium, city council, news, worthington
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