These La Grange Residents Want To Save Theater

LA GRANGE, IL — Sixteen La Grange residents told the Village Board this week that they supported some type of new deal with La Grange Theatre. The venue is asking the village to forgive $1 million in loans it received as part of a 12-year-old agreement with the village.

However, one resident, a wife of a village trustee, spoke out against the forgiveness proposal, calling it "corporate socialism." The Patch wrote about her opposition in a story Wednesday.

The owners of the struggling theater, which has been closed throughout the pandemic, would never have to pay the loans as long as they kept the venue in operation. Now, they want to remove the liens from the property as part of a deal to get Downers Grove-based Classic Cinemas to operate the theater.

The owners have offered to share their profits with the village, which one official estimates could bring the village a half million over a decade. Classic Cinemas promises to add heated, reclined seating and show first-run movies, unlike the current arrangement.

The supporters of some type of deal include a restaurant owner, the head of a local business group and a former village president.

Here are some of the comments from the residents:

• Steve Palmer, owner of Palmer Place restaurant — He encouraged the Village Board to consider the positive effects of the La Grange Theatre on nearby businesses such as his. He said his restaurant sees fewer customers as a result of the theater's closure, which means less sales tax money for the village.

Before the pandemic, Palmer said, he would have likely called for the theater owners to stick to the original agreement. But he said federal loans that were forgiven kept his business alive during the crisis. "I think we need to look at this in a different light," he said, adding, "Maybe not 100 percent forgiveness."

• Lara Taylor — Growing up in Hinsdale, she said former village trustees in that town regretted the closure of its theater in 2003. In Hinsdale's case, officials lacked a willing owner with whom to enter a deal. She said La Grange should take advantage of the fact that it does have one.

"We can wax philosophic on the joys of a theater, and I'm happy to do so. I saw 'White Men Can't Jump' there for my first date. It was terrible — movie and date," Taylor said to laughter. "I brought my little kids there to watch movies. We all have these wonderful experiences."

She asked La Grange trustees not to squander the opportunity. "Find a deal," she implored.

• Nancy Cummings, executive director of the La Grange Business Association — She said she was speaking on behalf of her group's board of directors, which represents about 300 local businesses. She said La Grange Theatre is among the "most acutely impacted" local businesses during the pandemic.

"The theater has both a cultural and historical significance to the community and is the backbone of our business district," Cummings said. "It not only drives day tourism and its subsequent spending to La Grange, but it helps to distinguish us from other communities, it brings in audiences from surrounding areas, and it provides a sense of identity to our village."

Cummings said a theater showing first-run movies would have a collective benefit for other local small businesses. She called Classic Cinemas' plan a "once-in a generation opportunity."

• Stephanie Posey — She grew up in Downers Grove, where Classic Cinemas' Tivoli Theatre is. She said the company has done a good job evolving with the industry.

"We are talking about investing in the community. I think the La Grange Theatre is more than just a theater. It's part of the fabric of the community," Posey said.

She urged the board to "save this cultural icon of La Grange."

• Elizabeth Asperger, former La Grange village president — She credited Village President Mark Kuchler, then a trustee, with finding a compromise to provide the loans to the theater a dozen years ago.

"There is no question in my mind that we are better off for having made this agreement," Asperger said. "It was a success. It was the economic driver that we intended it to be."

At the same time, she said she realized the Village Board had to protect local taxpayers and honor their tax dollars in the village's investments.

"The theater is an economic development engine," she said. "It is one of the pieces that are the heart and soul of our community."