Fox Theater Fundraising Underway, Public Tours Coming
The interior of the Fox Theater shows a lot of repairs are needed. (Courtesy John Hartman)
By Joel Murillo
Structural studies for the Fox Theater building are drawing to a close, and the public will soon get a glimpse of the inside.
Those close to the project say the hunt for an architect will soon be underway.
“The building was built well in 1894 and the family did a very good job taking care of it,” said Greg Wright, president of the Fox Theater Board. “The building is actually in very good shape for a building that’s as old as it is.”
The building was donated to the Arts Alliance of Portage County last year by the Sanders Family and with plans to redevelop the building for with some type of public access.
Wright heads the committee that has been working for the past year and a half towards reopening the Fox. Wright said that the first order of business- conducting a structural study- has been completed.
Wright said the board has since been narrowing down ideas for a formal business plan, which will include the types of theatrical programs which might be in demand. That’s where Bill Schierl comes in.
Schierl, Arts Alliance board president and treasurer of the Fox Theater board, said the group needed to conduct a study of how other similar theaters were operating. Seeing the comparisons, he said, is vital to reopening the Fox.
“We interviewed about 35 different theaters,” Schierl said. “It was determined that we needed to find out what was successful with other facilities our size and in similar communities.”
Schierl also said public input was important. The Fox on Main Community Research Survey, which closed on June 30, generated over 1,000 responses concerning what interested area residents had relating to the theater. At press time, Wright said the responses were still being analyzed.
“We’re waiting to see how the community wants the facility to be used in order to decide what our best choice is in the market,” Wright said. “We want to use the Fox as a multi-use performance space.”
Wright said the board believes flexible programming within the theater can be economically sustainable, and expects to see a combination of comedy performances, family programming and film, as well as theater and dance.
Former UWSP College of Fine Arts Dean and previous president of the Fox Theater Board Gerard McKenna said that live music is another option.
“One of the ideas that I support is a live music venue,” McKenna said. “That’s something the city doesn’t have, and if you look at downtown with Mid-State Technical College, there are a lot of younger people coming through. It’s in great proximity to all the other things happening downtown.”
Wright said the board also conducted a feasibility study to project the economic impact downtown with an open Fox Theater to ensure it wouldn’t interfere with already-existing businesses. Restoring the theater, he said, would likely only have a positive impact on the downtown business district.
“The study we’ve done has shown that anywhere within five years of being open, the Fox could be responsible for $5-10 million of annual economic impact downtown,” he said. “This would improve the quality of life in Stevens Point.”
The Fox on Main LLC is planning to conduct tours of the Fox Theater during Discover Downtown, formerly known as Krazy Days, on Friday and Saturday July 18 and 19.
Donations will be taken at the door to benefit theater renovations. For more information you can search “The Fox on Main” on Facebook.