Egyptian Theatre granted $50K in federal COVID-19 relief funding from DeKalb city

DeKALB – After a month of debate and public pleas by dozens of supports, the Egyptian Theatre was awarded $50,000 in federal COVID-19 relief funding by the city of DeKalb this week.

The award, which was $25,000 less than what Egyptian staff initially had asked for, was extended by a 5-2 DeKalb City Council vote Monday. DeKalb-based theater troupe Stage Coach Players was awarded its full request of $25,000.

At its regular meeting, the City Council agreed on how to spend the remaining $349,241 in federal American Rescue Plan Act grant funds allocated to the city in response to the pandemic. Fifth Ward Alderman Scott McAdams was absent, and Sixth Ward Alderman Mike Verbic and Fourth Ward Alderman Greg Perkins voted no.

DeKalb city leaders have been tasked with divvying up the funding left uncommitted.

Aside from the Egyptian Theatre and Stagecoach Players, the city identified several other projects that could benefit from ARPA grant funds. The options vary, ranging from repaving Greenbrier Road and incentivizing a community center in Annie Glidden North to upgrading the transit stop on Blackhawk Road and re-roofing the Glidden Homestead Barn.

City Manager Bill Nicklas said the total of all these items is $350,000, which is within a few dollars of what he had presented is remaining in the city’s ARPA grant fund.

First Ward Alderwoman Carolyn Morris said she is agreeable to the package outlining how the city will spend the remaining ARPA grant funds.

“I fully support of this entire recommended list seeing as how Egyptian gets some, Stage Coach Players gets some, repaving, lots of infrastructure investments here, upgraded street lighting,” Morris said. “All of this seems perfect to me.”

Second Ward Alderwoman Barb Larson said she views the ARPA grant funding as an opportunity to promote equity across the city.

“I think when we look at the some of the issues we’re dealing with now we’ll say the city got out of balance,” Larson said. “We didn’t look at all the areas. Then, all of a sudden, I was like, ‘Oh my gosh. We should have been paying more attention.’ The one lesson I want to learn from that mistake is that we’re constantly trying to balance the city, the services, whatever it is and not forget until there’s another squeaky wheel that we’ve forgotten about.”

Verbic said his view remains unchanged since the last time the council discussed the matter and that the city manager’s package only further cements his position.

“This is part of the reason why I wanted to wait last time,” Verbic said. “Look what’s come about just since last time from a standpoint of justified need.”

Previously, the city had not publicly disclosed a list of projects to commit the remaining ARPA funds toward.

Third Ward Alderman Tracy Smith said he supports the package that was presented by the city manager.

“I think as we look at the dollars, there’s $350,000, which really doesn’t go a long ways to get a lot of projects,” Smith said. “I think we have to hit the biggest need at the moment. But as Alderman Larson and Alderman Verbic, I believe said, we have to consider the rest of the town as well. So, I think we need to start moving around the different wards on some of the projects in a similar scenario.”

Mayor Cohen Barnes said the council is fairly divided on this topic. He said he doesn’t agree with everything that’s on the list, but his view on the matter remains unchanged. He said the city is consumed by many things that the community needs city leaders to focus on.

“This is detracting staff. This is detracting us,” Barnes said. “It’s causing turmoil that quite frankly, I’m just tired of. I would rather just put this thing to bed. We vote on it, the package presented together by the city manager. [He] put in a bunch of time coming up with this and prioritizing this and then we can move onto city business.”

Egyptian Theatre executive director Alex Nerad said the theater had been working with the city to work toward a compromise on this matter.

“Part of that is the Egyptian Theatre has agreed to reduce our funding request from $75,000 to $50,000 in order to try to move forward with a comprehensive list of things to use the remaining ARPA funds,” Nerad said. “Moving forward with this proposal gives the council an opportunity to show the community and DeKalb stakeholders near and far that council listens to the community and is willing to come to a compromise and move forward.”

Larson, who has family employed by the theater, said she is content with the council’s decision, but called it odd how the matter had to play its course.

“It’s rather ironic the reason we’re having this discussion and that we found out the monies almost gone is because the Egyptian Theatre asked,” she said.