News, Press Releases - Wednesday, March 10, 2010 3:11 - 0 Comments

Support, questions greet call for new board to coordinate venues

CLICK HERE TO READ THE CULTURE PANEL’S REPORT

ROCKFORD — Leaders of downtown venues are largely supportive of an effort to consolidate and pool resources, but point out that plenty of details remain unknown.

A transformation of how the Rockford region operates its cultural venues is under way after Mayor Larry Morrissey and Winnebago County Board Chairman Scott Christiansen on Tuesday formally accepted a new report.

The “Raising the Curtains” report from the Downtown Venues, Festivals and Special Events Advisory Group was the culmination of nine months of work and hundreds of volunteer hours of research, debate and meetings.

Venues Advisory Group Chairman Mike Dunn said the report could usher in a new era of collaboration and efficiency through a consolidation of the city’s major venues including the MetroCentre arena, Coronado Performing Arts Center and Davis Park under the umbrella of a new organization.

At a time when taxpayers are overburdened and “people are suffering,” consolidation of management and back office functions are needed to make the most efficient use of resources, Dunn said.

“We recommend that we consolidate, but that we do so with the very best people throughout all these venues that share the vision of working together and understand that downtown can become an unbelievable cultural campus — a destination,” Dunn said.

Déjà vu for Coronado?
The consolidation of resources and shared management structure may sound familiar.

MetroCentre officials had for years programmed the Coronado before the formation of a not-for-profit Coronado Performing Arts Center organization three years ago that is contracted by the city to operate the theater.

But the structure proposed by the Venues Advisory Group is different from what was in place in the past, said Craig Thomas, president of the Coronado board of directors.

The findings of Dunn’s committee calls for the disbanding of the nine-member MetroCentre Authority Board as we know it. Full Press Release…