Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts Fee Waiver
For the purpose of waiving certain fees for the Maryland Hall for the Creative Art's third phase of its multi-year project to renovate its 93-year-old building and facilities in and around the building.
City Council of the
City of Annapolis
Resolution 5-25
Introduced by: Mayor Buckley
Co-sponsored by:
Referred to: Finance Committee
A RESOLUTION concerning
Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts Fee Waiver
FOR the purpose of waiving certain fees for the Maryland Hall for the Creative Art's third phase of its multi-year project to renovate its 93-year-old building and facilities in and around it.
WHEREAS, Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts is a multi-disciplinary arts center whose mission is to provide opportunities in arts education, the visual arts and performing arts for the Annapolis community; and
WHEREAS, Maryland Hall is home to artists-in-residence who create and share their work, teach classes and conduct outreach programs, and four resident companies: Annapolis Opera, Ballet Theatre of Maryland, Annapolis Symphony, and Live Arts Maryland; and
WHEREAS, The Annapolis Film Festival and the World Artist Experience are also major partners with Maryland Hall; and
WHEREAS, The building contains rooms for performing and fine arts classes for all ages and a 725-seat auditorium used for film, opera, symphonic, or pop music by renowned performers, and all programs provide scholarships, free tickets, or are free or low-cost admission; and
WHEREAS, The building was constructed in 1932 as the Annapolis High School at 801 Chase Street in Historic Annapolis, in an Upper-West Annapolis neighborhood, and in 1979, it transitioned to Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts when the high school moved to Riva Road; and
WHEREAS, Each year, Maryland Hall arts programs, with their diverse range of performances, community programs, educational opportunities, and free exhibits, reach more than 100,000 people, ages 3 months to 103 years, of all backgrounds and economic means, making a significant impact on our community; and the facility is well-used; and
WHEREAS, The historic 93-year-old Maryland Hall building has been going through a multi-phased renovation project in three phases as funds are raised to complete the projects, consisting of Act I, a modernization of the theater with professional acoustics and improvements to audience sight lines, was completed in 2015; Act II, a new loading dock and freight elevator, additional ADA accessibility, and a new climate control (HVAC) system; and Act III, now in the permit process; and
WHEREAS, Act III includes the construction of the North wing to complete improvements/additions, begun in 2007, and renovations/repairs to the 1932 historic building, classrooms, outreach, resident company, and modernization and repair of heavily used public spaces, while additions to the landmark building will provide fly space, stage support, lobby space for the new theater, vertical circulation, additional dressing rooms and cafe; and
WHEREAS, Funding for the multi-phased project has been raised from a variety of sources, including contributions by local supporters, City of Annapolis in-kind contributions, State grants and bonds; and
WHEREAS, The Annapolis City Council, recognizing the invaluable contribution of the Maryland Hall to our community, wishes to extend its support to the renovation project by waiving fees related to the permitting process;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE ANNAPOLIS CITY COUNCIL that: the City shall waive certain fees required for the Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts renovation project estimated to be $55,000.
AND BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED BY THE ANNAPOLIS CITY COUNCIL that this resolution shall take effect upon passage.