In its Thursday meeting, the Gainesville City Commission approved financial support for the Hippodrome Theatre and Gainesville Police Department officer pay increases.
Following Gov. Ron DeSantis’ June veto of all requested state arts and culture funding, the City of Gainesville agreed to provide $150,000 for the Hippodrome Theatre’s operations in a six to one vote, with Commissioner Reina Saco dissenting.
“Governor DeSantis, with the stroke of a pen, removed $250,000 worth of funding from the Hippodrome unexpectedly,” Mayor Harvey Ward said. “The sad thing is…it did not improve the state budget. It just harmed the arts and economic development in every community around the state.”
Ward said the Hippodrome, having been active for over 50 years, is a keystone and an anchor in the community.
The theater qualifies for $150,000 in state funding annually, all of which was denied in June. An additional $100,000 deficit resulted from the early closing of the summer musical, which was attributed to both the veto and staff illness.
Each commissioner highlighted the Hippodrome’s vital role in the Gainesville community, expressing support in its continuation. Commissioner Desmon Duncan-Walker said the first show she participated in as a child was at the theater.
“We know that a lot of you are struggling…I think many of us on this dais want to see the Hippodrome continue to be able to contribute to arts, culture and the economy,” Duncan-Walker said. “We also want to make sure that we’re able to still be fair across the board.
Beyond the Hippodrome, over $1 million in state funding was denied to arts and culture organizations within the local community. Saco said she was afraid of the precedent awarding funds to the Hippodrome would create while other organizations continued to suffer.
“I don’t look forward to the next time someone gets their funding cut or has an economic emergency that we become a funding source when we, a couple months ago, were talking about possibly firing people,” she said. “We’re not really in a position to…be that person whose door gets knocked on.”
The city’s current financial strains stem from a decrease in the General Funds Transfer, the amount of money the GRU authority returns to the city annually to maintain operations, which was cut by $6.8 million on June 26.
Saco suggested the city and county split the $250,000 the Hippodrome requested from the state, refusing to authorize more than $125,000 of city money to be gifted to the theater.
Mark Sexton, Alachua County Commission spokesperson and former Hippodrome employee, said the county authorized the distribution of remaining county arts and culture grants to the Hippodrome. However, Sexton said the sum was already accounted for in the theater’s budget and would not go toward minimizing the $250,000 deficit.
Downtown Advisory Board Chair Linda McGurn said the board recommended the city fund the full sum of $250,000 following a presentation from Hippodrome representatives.
Ward said the theater is more than just an arts organization but also functions as an economic center for downtown. Commissioner Eastman proposed the authorization of the $150,000 that passed, and it is now up to the city manager’s office to determine where funds will be allocated from.
The city commission also voted to increase officer pay at the Gainesville Police Department and passed two ordinances on code changes. The first revised codes concerning the opening of bottle clubs, setting restrictions on how the clubs can operate in Gainesville. The second expanded the legal definition of criminal activities that are considered a “public nuisance” on business properties, including prostitution and repeated violations of assault and battery.
The next city commission meeting will take place Aug. 15.
Contact Morgan Vanderlaan at mvanderlaan@alligator.org. Follow her on X @morgvande.
Morgan Vanderlaan is a second year Political Science major and the Fall 2024 Politics Enterprise Reporter. When she's not on the clock she can be found writing, reciting, and watching theatre!
