Hilton Head to discuss arts center lighting, future purchase option

A proposal to replace lights at the Arts Center of Coastal Carolina could turn into a down payment by the Town of Hilton Head Island to purchase the building later.

Town Council during its regular meeting Tuesday could decide to spend up to $600,000 to replace the lights, but council members have said previously they likely wouldn’t make a quick decision on that proposal.

Funds for the new lighting could be applied as a down payment for the arts center facility only if the town decided to purchase the building at a later date, Tom Lennox, council member and town Finance and Administrative Committee chairman, told The Island Packet and The Beaufort Gazette. He said there currently is no proposal for the town to purchase the building.

Some Town Council members, including Lennox, believe any payments, including covering the cost of new lights, to the arts center should wait until town officials have a better idea about the costs of Hurricane Matthew. Others contend that even more time is needed to fully vet any proposals involving the center.

The arts center has operated in the red for years. It raised about $5 million to pay off debt in 2013 but has failed to reach another $1 million campaign since.

Kathy Bateson, arts center president and CEO, said programing at the facility raises enough revenue to cover the $3.9 million annual operating expenses. Yet, she said there is not a large enough reserve fund to cover extra expenses such as new lights.

The design of the building is part of the problem, Lennox said, noting, “The capacity of the building is not big enough for them to sell enough tickets.”

But Lennox and others who support using public dollars to help the arts center say the investment is worth it.

Bateson said recent estimates compiled by the center show a $13 million economic impact from out-of-town visitors who see shows at the center. The area also receives an $8 million impact from local users of the center, according to center studies.

A 20-year-old lighting system could put that economic impact at risk, Bateson said.

“Part of the light system operates on a floppy disk,” she said. “It is not replaceable. If the system goes out and cannot be brought back up, we will have to close the production. The loss of business would be frightening.”

Others are not as certain that the town should be so quick to invest in the arts center.

Kim Likins, Town Council member, said the town set up a Venue Committee, which she sits on, to review how to best spend taxpayer dollars on arts and culture.

“The council unanimously voted to put together the Venue Committee and unanimously agreed on a scope of work and put in that scope of work for the committee to review the arts center requests,” Likins said. “I believe this (lighting proposal) should be looked at in the context of the whole and the best interest of the community at large.”

The Venue Committee was created by Town Council last spring and charged with presenting, by the end of December, a comprehensive plan for arts and culture for the town. It is unknown whether Hurricane Matthew will affect that timeline.

Arts center officials were asked for more information regarding the center’s financial state by the Venue Committee last month, Likins said. She said the committee has yet to receive the information, adding that the hurricane has delayed a response.

“The Venue Committee sincerely had some questions to better understand the center’s business model,” Likins said. “That is a critical component of this process.”

Lennox said the lighting proposal is on the Town Council agenda for Tuesday, but a decision likely will be deferred a couple of months. He said the town’s focus should be on costs related to the hurricane.

This story was originally published October 31, 2016 at 4:56 PM with the headline "Hilton Head to discuss arts center lighting, future purchase option."