City offers to loan $100,000 for Palace work

By Sara QuamThe Luverne City Council Tuesday agreed to front the Palace Theatre money for building improvements.The money will be spent by the city only after, and if, the Palace is awarded a grant by the Minnesota Historical Society. The grant requires matching funds.The council vote was to match up to $100,000, depending on what the Palace is granted.Councilman Maynard Lafrenz cast the only vote against the loan, because he said if fund-raising doesn’t go as planned the city won’t be repaid.The Palace’s managing non-profit group, Blue Mound Area Theater, intends to do a large fund-raising campaign to repay the city."We’re going to try to get this done before September 2007 for Ken Burns," Palace representative Ben Vander Kooi said.Vander Kooi said having documentary film-maker Ken Burns, and possibly Tom Hanks, coming to the Palace is good incentive to do some repairs.Burns is premiering his World War II documentary film in Luverne. In the film, Tom Hanks is the voice of former Star Herald publisher Al McIntosh.If the grant and matching funds are awarded to the Palace, BMAT plans to purchase new seats and fix some failing brick and stone work on the building. The seats are 90 years old and have been repaired and restored as much as possible. The Council action Tuesday was to commit the city as the sponsoring agency for the grant application in order to get the state money. The state Historical Society will award the grants at the end of the year.In other business Tuesday, the council:
Approved a promotion agreement between the city of Luverne and the Luverne Area Chamber of Commerce. Two payments of $9,500 are made annually to the Chamber.In return, the Chamber agrees to promote the following community events and public facilities: Buffalo Days, Hot Dog Night, Border to Border Triathlon, Winterfest, Tri-State Band Festival, Luverne Home Show, Hometown Greeter, Blue Mounds State Park, Blue Mounds biking-hiking trail and the Main Street entrance area.
Approved various requests the Rock County Agricultural Society asked of the city for the county fair: —place no parking signs along a portion of Freeman Ave.; —allow the ag society to use 12 handicap and 12 no parking portable signs; —spray the fairgrounds for mosquitoes prior to the fair and once during the fair; —allow the use of 200 feet of the city’s orange plastic fencing; —allow access to a fire hydrant for water for the racetrack for all three nights of the fair; —approve a temporary liquor license for the sale of beer on the fairgrounds Aug. 3 through Aug. 5.
Asked city residents not to water their lawns from the hours of 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. The city isn’t in a water shortage, but with the dry weather, conservation will prevent having to impose restrictions.
Approved a resolution authorizing the execution of a Minnesota Department of Transportation Airport Grant Agreement for the new hangar at the airport.The local portion of the hangar project is $41,000, which will be recouped through hangar rentals.