From auditorium to reception facility?
Staff writer
When Bob Brookens and the auditorium committee members look at Marion City Auditorium, they see something more than the traditional auditorium.
They want to see the seats removed and the slope of the floor changed to accommodate tables and chairs. The stage could stay intact.
Brookens went on to explain to Marion City Council Monday that the facility then could be used for wedding receptions, dinner theater, meetings and seminars, and as a movie theater other than being used just a few times a year.
The idea came to Brookens when he attended a wedding reception at the Wareham Theater at Manhattan. That theater had been renovated from a movie theater to a multi-purpose facility.
Brookens said the Wareham Theater’s floor was on three levels and could hold 500-600 people.
“We struggle sometimes in Marion when we want to hold a large gathering,” Brookens said.
Marion Advancement Campaign also is interested in helping with the project with its members thinking along the same line as Brookens and his committee.
Brookens also has talked with Jim Cloutier who is in the process of renovating the former Elgin Apartments. Brookens said he wanted to make sure an auditorium project wouldn’t “step on” Cloutier’s project, which Brookens said it would not.
Cloutier’s building could hold 150-200 people while the city building could hold more than that.
The Wareham Theater and Marion City Auditorium are similar in size, with Marion being slightly smaller.
Brookens also informed the council that Courtney Geis, a senior architect student at Kansas State University, has submitted an application to use the city auditorium for her senior architect project. That information from her project, which would include design ideas and cost estimates, could then be used by city officials in determining if the project is feasible.
“The ball is in your court,” Brookens told the council, “and we’ll await your decision.”
Auditorium committee members include Brookens, Jeff Cady, Kevin Fruechting, and Susan Berg.
The council took the information under advisement.