City funds Civic Auditorium maintenance pending search for new facility manager

The Redding City Council agreed unanimously last night to allocate $107,000 of city funds for short-term maintenance and operations at the Civic Auditorium.

The approval of funding comes as the city prepares to take back management of the entertainment venue when Advance Redding’s lease ends on July 31. The nonprofit, which was created primarily to run the Civic, decided to end its contract with the city earlier this year after a yearslong struggle to stay afloat financially. 

The city is pulling $5,000 from its general fund for a one-time cost to pay for the securing of the facility, which includes fencing installation, rekeying and other protective measures. The city will also be spending $17,000 a month for six months for utilities, security, staff time for inspections and upkeep and miscellaneous service contracts, including fire alarms and monitoring. 

“When you own a building, even though it is vacant, maintenance does not stop,” said Community Services Director Travis Menne during his presentation on funding the Civic. 

Only a few city-sponsored events will be held at the auditorium while the city searches for new management, including the Ironman awards ceremony in August and the Fly Fishers International Conference in September. All events previously scheduled under Advance Redding’s management have either been canceled or moved to the Cascade Theatre.

Council member Dr. Paul Dhanuka asked during the meeting if other groups, such as churches, could hold events at the Civic during this transitional period by renting the auditorium for a day. Menne said that would be too difficult for the city to handle given that it doesn’t have the expertise and staffing to operate the venue. 

Mayor Mike Littau expressed concern over the appearance of fencing around the Civic, saying it would be an eyesore and that it might attract vandalism. Menne explained that barricades are necessary to go up in some places, but they likely won’t be publicly visible. He said the fencing isn’t expected to be placed for another few weeks.

Also within the next few weeks, Menne said, a request for proposal will be issued to allow interested entities to apply to manage the Civic. While some people are skeptical that the city will be able to find an entity willing and able to take on the challenge of running the Civic, Menne said a new operator is expected to take over in October or November. If that’s the case, any funds left from the $107,000 funding allocation would be returned to the city, unless the operator negotiates terms to retain that funding. 

City staff plan to bring back an update about the request for proposal process later this year.

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