I hope something happens with this building, it's a gem which shouldn't be wasted. From the Ithaca Journal.
STAFF PHOTO/SIMON WHEELER
Masonic Temple draws interest from State Theatre
Potential not-for-profit buyer would redevelop high-profile building
7:51 PM, Sep. 10, 2012
Written by
David Hill
ITHACA — The not-for-profit organization that owns the State Theatre is seeking financing to buy the former Masonic Temple and turn the building into a community center with meeting space, offices and room for use by New Roots Charter School.
State Theatre of Ithaca Inc. has only an agreement in principle to buy the building, at 115-117 N. Cayuga St. But the organization has developed a plan for what would be called the State North Community Center, according to a proposal before the Ithaca Urban Renewal Agency Economic Development Committee.
STI is applying for a loan of up to $400,000 from city funds designated for certain types of development projects, and the committee is scheduled to consider the proposal today.
People involved in the deal declined to comment on it Monday.
The proposal before the IURA details what State Theatre Inc. has in mind and reasons to make the loan. Those include replacing meeting and office space lost when the Women’s Community Building was torn down for the Breckenridge Place housing development; room for the growing New Roots school; a financial boost for STI; and making use of a historic building.
An after-school teen center also is suggested in the proposal.
The Masonic Temple is on the southeast corner of Cayuga and Seneca streets, one of downtown’s busiest intersections. It was built in the mid-1920s in a then-popular style evoking ancient Egypt following the 1922 rediscovery of the King Tutaankhamun tomb.
The Masons chapter sold it in the 1990s to developer and landlord Jason Fane, whose Ithaca Renting Co. manages it. With its architectural style and link to Freemasonry, it was given state and federal landmark status, which restricts how it can be used and altered. The owner has not been allowed to tear it down and redevelop the site. The building has since housed a restaurant and a nightclub.
State Theatre Inc.’s project description says the building comprises 17,500 square feet and has been largely unused for more than 10 years. It has a 2,650-square-foot auditorium with a stage, another 2,200-square-foot hall, a commercial kitchen and bar area, and several smaller rooms.
“This is essentially a limited-use building in need of a different sort of plan, one that is non-commercial in nature,” State Theatre Inc.’s project plan says. “The opportunity is at hand, and the need is great to put this historic building to good use once again.”
The anchor tenant would be New Roots. The charter school was using the Women’s Community Building as its cafeteria, and has since been using nearby St. Catherine’s Greek Orthodox Church. The school would use approximately 7,500 square feet, some shared and some exclusively. The school is based in the Clinton House, the 19th century landmark hotel across Cayuga Street from the temple.
Other space would be rented to not-for-profit community organizations.
The total estimated project cost is $1.3 million, which includes buying and renovating the building.
If owned by the not-for-profit organization, the property would likely be tax-exempt. A draft resolution before the IURA committee calls for a payment-in-lieu-of-taxes agreement for the duration of the loan of $8,500 annually, which equals what the city would lose in property taxes, minus $200 for each documented use of the auditorium or kitchen.
Other sources of funds for the project would be a $500,000 loan from the Park Foundation, a $200,000 bank loan and a $200,000 loan from Tompkins County Area Development.
Projected rents would not pay back all the loans, so State Theatre Inc. has a philanthropic fundraising company lined up to help plan a campaign. The proposed resolution would require a personal guarantee against default from “persons of sufficient net worth and liquidity” to repay the loan.
If the IURA Economic Development Committee offers its recommendation, the full IURA board would consider the application Sept. 27. It also would be subject to approval by the Ithaca Common Council.