Local businessmen show support for Playhouse's financial plans

And a report on today's Flat Rock village council agenda meeting from the Times-News (their site was down earlier):

After hearing a group of prominent businessmen endorse Flat Rock Playhouse’s financial plans, Flat Rock Village Council tabled discussion Monday of further funding for the cash-strapped theater until its regularly scheduled meeting Dec. 13.

Councilmen Jimmy Chandler, Don Farr and Ron Davis said they wanted more time to examine the Playhouse’s 2013 business plan before deciding whether to lift a ban council placed in October on funding for nonprofits.

The Playhouse’s business plan for 2013 calls for $4.07 million in operating expenses and $4.12 million in revenues. Producing Artistic Director Vincent Marini told council the plan also builds in $301,460 in automatic cuts “set up throughout the year if we don’t meet certain revenue projections.”

Governmental support is a small but important piece of that revenue picture, Marini told council, adding that the Playhouse must also pursue more grants, continue to woo major donors, optimize group sales efforts and explore opportunities to export Playhouse productions to places such as Florida.

Mayor Bob Staton said the village could contribute $100,000 — meeting a challenge thrown out by county Commissioner Larry Young last week — by taking $25,000 the village already gave the Playhouse this year, adding another $50,000 already budgeted for “community support,” and making another $25,000 contribution next fiscal year....

Describing himself as “cheap and puckered up as anybody (on council),” camp director Robert Danos said the Playhouse’s role as an economic engine for local businesses merits village support. He called the theater’s management “incredibly impressive” and said the Playhouse’s contribution to arts education hasn’t been lauded enough.

The city of Hendersonville stepped up with $100,000 for the Playhouse this year, said businessman Jeff Miller, and the county is poised to “step back in” with the same. Miller said Playhouse leaders have a business plan that will work, but they need the village’s help to bolster consumer confidence....

While agreeing that the Playhouse was “wonderful” and “necessary,” Councilman Farr reminded his colleagues that the theater used to operate without any governmental help.

“This is the third year in a row that you folks have shown up here at the end of year saying, ‘Oops! We spent all of our money getting through the fall and now we have no money to get through the winter. Give us more money.’ That means bad planning, bad management or both. What’s going to change?”

Chandler echoed those sentiments, asking Playhouse leaders, “Does your long-term plan get back to the point where you don’t need any local government funding?”

Marini responded that regardless of whether the Playhouse is making or losing money, “we’re always going to be in front of you asking for money” because some public support is necessary for the Playhouse to function as a nonprofit, educational entity....

Read it all.