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oatmealparty t1_j2c1l73 wrote

Reply to comment by Brudesandwich in Year-end Update on the Loews Jersey Reno from FOL by ludlowfair

Well, it doesn't help that the city spent years sabotaging and stealing grant money for the theater that was intended for restoration. If the city hadn't done that, the FOL may have been able to get the theater renovated a long time ago, but Fulop was determined to get the theater into private hands.

It's been frustrating to me as well that the Loews is still in terrible condition, but the city has played a big part in that. And I'm glad the Loews fought to get an agreement that keeps some dates for community events and arts, because the original plan to just turn it over to a multi billion dollar company with little oversight and barely any events for community use was ridiculous.

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Brudesandwich t1_j2c3bim wrote

The amount of money needed to restore the theater is far more than any community event showing classic movies for like $5 or grant money could do. The restorations alone would cost approximately $75 million. Plus, this city is sorely in need of tax revenue, specifically something that could potentially bring in millions annually in taxes. Whether anyone likes it or not the theater was a major financial drain on the city and continues to be.

Plus, this theater was literally made for "big" events. Classical movies are cool but it's not going to draw a crowd

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SoundMachineJC t1_j2dgcdu wrote

>And I'm glad the Loews fought to get an agreement that keeps some dates for community events and arts, because the original plan to just turn it over to a multi billion dollar company with little oversight and barely any events for community use was ridiculous.

Huh? The original 2014 AEG deal that was sadly cancelled because the FOL would not give up their lease had a guaranteed number of community events in it.

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ludlowfair OP t1_j2f6bha wrote

The Kings Theater had a beautiful and faithful restoration through a partnership of government and business interests. They managed it without a group like FOL in the process.

The Kings also holds a number of events for the community with local groups and BIDs. There's no single gatekeeping NPO who requires a specific number of days and is the arbiter of the kind of events that take place there.

I'd much rather have the new management of the Loew's committed to working with a number of local groups than force them to work with a single group with a particular vision of the purpose of that theater.

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