BY LUCY MAY
The Cincinnati Enquirer
The overwhelming defeat of a state sales tax increase for schools is threatening the proposed new Contemporary Arts Center (CAC) in downtown Cincinnati.
The $25 million project has been counting on $5 million in state funds. But state legislative leaders have said the failure of Issue 2 could threaten -- or at least delay -- state funds for other community projects, such as museums, stadiums and college buildings.
CAC Director Charles Desmarais said the center doesn't know exactly how the defeat of Issue 2 on May 5 will affect plans for the proposed 65,000-square-foot Contemporary Arts Center, to be located at the northwest corner of Sixth and Walnut streets downtown. "We're as much in the dark as everyone else is," he said.
Cincinnati Economic Development Director Andi Udris warned city council's Community Development Committee on Tuesday that the Issue 2 defeat could hurt plans for the new center, which has been among council's development priorities.
Council members bristled at the notion. Councilman Todd Portune urged council to remind the legislature that "its inability to meet its constitutional obligation to the schoolchildren of this state has nothing to do with these other projects.
"It's really unseemly, the kinds of threats that were made during the Issue 2 campaign."
Bobbie Sterne, committee chair, said that while council can resent the state's tone, the fact remains that the state must now find the money it needs for schools. "I certainly understand why they are suddenly scrambling and saying "We don't know,' because they don't know," she said.
While state funding is crucial to the arts project, Mr. Desmarais said the center has some time to work with state officials. The agreement that center officials are working on with the city calls for construction of the center to begin at the end of 1999, he said.
The city has approved $4.3 million for land acquisition for the project.
In other downtown development news, Mr. Udris told the committee: City officials still consider expansion of the Albert B. Sabin Convention Center a top priority. Mr. Udris said city officials have asked an architectural firm to update its cost estimates for doubling the convention center's space.
Old estimates put the cost at $300 million.
The city's costs on the proposed Maison Blanche department store at Fifth and Race streets will increase by $1.3 million.
That's how much more it will cost the city to have a Walgreens drug store move out of the way of the department store project, Mr. Udris said.
That would raise the city's contribution to the project to more than $23 million. The project is expected to cost $61 million.
