Future path of arts center no clearer

By JOHN HOWELL
Posted 3/19/19

By JOHN HOWELL Since announcing last month that he is looking to move city offices into the Kentish Armory next to the Apponaug Library, the home of the Warwick Center for the Arts for the past 34 years, Mayor Joseph Solomon has neither met with the arts

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Future path of arts center no clearer

Posted

Since announcing last month that he is looking to move city offices into the Kentish Armory next to the Apponaug Library, the home of the Warwick Center for the Arts for the past 34 years, Mayor Joseph Solomon has neither met with the arts board nor made plans to have city offices occupy the space.

“No one is throwing them out,” Solomon said in an interview last week.

At the invitation of the Planning Department, Stephany Hessler, president of the Warwick Center for the Arts, and members of her board will visit the vacant John Wickes School on Wednesday.

The school closed last June and there has been some discussion that it either could be leased or sold to Westbay Community Action as a site for offices now housed on the shopping plaza strip next to Job Lot in Buttonwoods. Paul Salera, Westbay president and CEO, said Monday that the agency is in preliminary talks with the city and if it were to occupy the school it would need most of the building for offices.

Where does this leave the Warwick Center for the Arts?

“Other than that, that’s all we know right now,” Hessler said Sunday. “We’re waiting to hear more from the city.”

Under the mayor’s plan, city departments once housed in the annex building behind City Hall that were forced out when a pipe burst in January 2018 and temporarily relocated to the former Greene School will move to the renovated Buttonwoods Community Center. That move is expected to take place in the next month or so. Two departments – personnel and IT – would not be making the move and it is those that Solomon would like to move to Apponaug. His first choice was the arts center.

“It would be good to have them [personnel and IT] next to City Hall,” he said.

While the administration had expressed interest in using the armory for city offices as early as last June, the proposal didn’t become public until Solomon questioned why the arts center was planning a Rocky Point exhibit for this summer if the building was going to become city office space.

The disclosure that the arts center, which has been paying $1 a year rent, would be forced out created a firestorm of protests from the arts community and those who see the center as a vital component to the vitality and the future of the village.

Clarifying his position, Solomon said he would consider other space in Apponaug for the city offices and if the arts center could offset the rental cost of such space by paying an equal amount for the armory there would be no added cost to the taxpayer and he would be happy. At the time he mentioned rent of $36,000, although, he pointed out, he has no basis of comparison.

Hessler said at the time $36,000 would be unmanageable for the center, which operates on a $65,000 budget. She said the center is willing to talk about rent, however.

Hessler further said that if the center cannot reach a lease with the city it would be required to return a $145,000 Champlin Foundation grant it was awarded in the fall to renovate the step entrance to the armory and create a small park between the armory and the library.

While $1 may seem a pittance in rent, Hessler pointed out that the center is paying all utilities, maintenance and insurance.

Increasing rent would mean an added burden to the center’s budget.

“We’re already seeing a large deficit this year,” she said.

She didn’t cite the amount of the budget shortfall, adding that it is attributable to building repairs. Raising the cost of programs offered by the center has been attempted, but Hessler said it is self-defeating, as enrollment drops and overall revenues decline.

Hessler questions the message a substantially higher lease payment would mean.

“It undercuts what a non-profit brings to a community,” she said.

As for Wickes, which she has yet to see, Hessler fears relocating from the armory would eliminate a revenue stream critical to the center’s survival. The center rents out the space to other groups and for private events.

Comments

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  • Former User

    The arts center has brought in grant funding for repairs while paying utilities, insurance, and maintenance and offering unique free programs to the community.

    Mayor Solomon should carefully consider whether he's ready to lose that over a demand for rent from the Center for the Arts -- rent that wouldn't be paid if the city moved into the building, anyway.

    It would cost the city more, in terms of money and the loss of an important community resource, to lose WCA from Apponaug.

    Tuesday, March 19, 2019 Report this

  • richardcorrente

    The value of that building is substantially greater than the rent Mayor Solomon is asking for.

    The rent should and is being greatly discounted but the reality is, if they don't pay, the taxpayers have to. To discount it all the way down to a dollar is too little.

    Happy Spring everyone.

    Rick Corrente

    The Taxpayers Mayor

    Tuesday, March 19, 2019 Report this

  • Justanidiot

    youse wonders why master mayer never got erected to the top position. read his statement above, he contradicts himself in da same sentence. what a guy

    Wednesday, March 20, 2019 Report this

  • richardcorrente

    Dear, Dear, Justanidiot,

    I'll explain.

    One dollar in rent is way too little to be fair to the 80,000 taxpayers that will have to pay a higher tab as a result. "Fair-market value" is too high a rent for a noble charitable organization such as this one. Therefore a "discounted" rent in the $3,000 range per month, as Mayor Solomon is proposing, seems like a fair compromise to me, and apparently, Stephany Hessler doesn't completely disagree stating that she "is willing to talk about rent."

    Sorry I wasn't clearer before, Big J.

    Hope you haven't lost too much faith in me.

    Happy Spring old friend.

    Rick Corrente

    The Taxpayers Mayor

    Wednesday, March 20, 2019 Report this

  • loumar

    The article reads that the center pays for all utilities, insurance, and maintenance. My neighbor,a member of the center said they pay for all of their own staffing as well. So yes they pay $1 a year but currently from what the article says there is no cost to the city at all and in turn they are able to offer all of these great programs for the city for all ages of the community.

    There are non-profits all across the state that are leased for $1 a year as I have never heard of a non-profit that could afford $3000 in rent a month. I guess the question is -- do we continue at $1 a year lease with no cost to the tax-payers and keep our only art center or charge them 3 grand which would probably force them to close and then have the cost to upkeep that building fall on the tax-payers to pay and loses our art center.

    Maybe there is something I am missing but it seems like a no-brainer to me.

    Wednesday, March 20, 2019 Report this

  • Justanidiot

    donts worry master mayer, eyes never had no faith in you eber

    Wednesday, March 20, 2019 Report this

  • richardcorrente

    Dear loumar,

    The "maybe there is something I am missing" part is the $3,000 per month that the City is NOT receiving. I think you already knew that. I think you were trying to cover-up by talking about upkeep, utilities, insurance, and staffing that any tenant would have to pay. I don't think that argument is fair to the 80,000 taxpayers that are paying the tab.

    Please re-read my comment and if you want to respectfully discuss it, call me at 401-338-9900.

    You know who I am. You know what I stand for. I want this noble charity to have a discounted rent. They deserve it. But $1.00 per year is just too little, too "discounted" in my opinion. I feel $3,000 a month is fair. What "fair rent" do you propose?

    Awaiting your response.

    Happy Spring loumar.

    Happy Spring everyone.

    Rick Corrente

    The Taxpayers Mayor

    Monday, March 25, 2019 Report this

  • Former User

    richard corrente, you clearly don't read anything very closely.

    loumar and I both made the same point, that charging this nonprofit would force it to close -- meaning the city would get nothing and would have to pay for upkeep, utilities, and insurance.

    That's a net cost to the city that the city is not paying now.

    You're the one trying to cover that up by talking about the taxpayers.

    I don't know which taxpayers you talk to, but no one I know supports spending more money when the city doesn't have it, and no one I know supports charging the WCA anything beyond what it already pays to use the building.

    Name one independent, non-city run nonprofit in Warwick that pays more than a $3,000 a year rent to the city.

    To be honest, I don't really expect that you'll answer that, and will instead make more of the same stupid accusations that got several of your past comments deleted.

    Monday, March 25, 2019 Report this

  • richardcorrente

    Dear Hillsgrove Hal,

    The value of the arts center to the City of Warwick is a little less than $3,000 a month. That's why Mayor Solomon decided that, to him, if the arts center were to pay the City $3,000 a month they would be giving Warwick a value that is worthwhile in the opinion of Mayor Solomon. Less than $3,000 would not make the City "whole" in his opinion, an opinion that he's entitled to.

    I stand by my comment.

    The City employees have to operate somewhere. If they move from the school, that building can be re-purposed, sold etc. another value to the City. If those city employees are closer to the City Hall, they can interact with the Mayor and others more readily.

    Solomon and I disagree on certain things. This is not one of them.

    Happy Spring everyone.

    Rick Corrente

    The Taxpayers Mayor

    Friday, March 29, 2019 Report this

  • Former User

    richard corrente, you did not name one non-city run nonprofit that pays anywhere near $3,000 a month.

    That means you and Mayor Solomon, by your admission, support losing the WCA and spending city funds to use the armory.

    The WCA should not subsidize the city's rent of another facility by paying for the armory. No other nonproft does anything like that.

    That means you and Mayor Solomon, by your admission, also support completely unfair and unprecedented treatment of one organization.

    By the way, more of your comments have been deleted because of the stupid accusations you keep repeating.

    When are you going to call the Beacon and ask why they keep deleting your comments?

    Friday, March 29, 2019 Report this