By Daily Press staff
(Editor’s note: This is part of an ongoing series that tracks the city’s expenditures which appear on the upcoming Santa Monica City Council consent agenda. Consent agenda items are routinely passed by the city council with little or no discussion from elected officials or the public. However, many of the items have been part of public discussion in the past.) The Santa Monica City Council is expected tonight to approve a little more than a quarter of a million dollars to fund two non-profit organizations as well as to hire a moving company to take items out of the main library.
The council voted last year to give the Santa Monica Playhouse $75,000. The playhouse, a professional theater and educational conservancy, may have to close its doors if it can’t find enough money to pay the rent, officials say.
Its current lease is up and the playhouse is negotiating to buy 50 percent of the building which is estimated to cost between $1 million and $1.5 million. The playhouse has to make a down payment of at least $500,000 in order to make monthly payments that are comparable to its current rental costs, city staff said. The playhouse, located on Fourth Street downtown, launched a fundraising campaign last year and is approaching its goal.
Another $22,400 could be spent on the Santa Monica Historical Society to help fund its continuing programs. The museum, which was founded in 1975, provides access to historic documents, photographs
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on January 28, 2003. Read the original PDF.