One of the fun things about HomeinHenderson.com is that we don’t have to write an actual story every time we have something to share. We aren’t bound by the limits of a newspaper page or a radio show; we can just throw something interesting up on the Web.
In that light, we present some information from Embassy Square Foundation Executive Director Kathy Powell in response to a few questions we had. Most of the questions were meant to clarify facts that seemed to get distorted in the retelling over time or simply confused us (not a difficult task).
The announcement of a date and time for the official groundbreaking for the new H. Leslie Perry Memorial Library, April 1 at 1 p.m., got us looking ahead to Phase 2 of the Embassy cultural center, the 1,000-seat performing-arts center.
First, Powell confirmed, or re-re-re-reconfirmed, that Phase 1 consists of the library and the gallery space. Both parts of the project were included the $8 million bid for the first phase.
“The McGregor Hall Gallery … is central to the Embassy Square Cultural Center as it is the entryway to both the library and second phase performance hall,” Powell wrote.
The cost of the second-phase theater is expected to be $6 million, which keeps the project in line with the original cost estimate of $15.5 million. That estimate included an even $1 million for the land on the south side of Embassy Square, Powell said. In fact, the city of Henderson spent a little more than $1 million to purchase the land; it also spent more than $700,000 on planning, design, legal fees and other professional services.
The fund raising has surpassed the amount needed to build the first phase of the cultural center, according to the numbers Powell supplied. She said the Embassy foundation has raised $9.1 million: $1.53 million from trustees; $1.02 million from corporations; $3.15 million from individuals; $428,000 from foundations; $2.9 million from the federal and state governments; and $72,000 from commercial and other sources.
The fund raising and planning for the second phase are in the hands of a committee known as Commission II, Powell said. “The fund -raising strategy will include both new funding sources and repeat funding sources.”
Commission II developed the promised business plan for the performance hall, Powell wrote, but “it is a work-in-progress and, as such, is not available at this time for public use.”
So that’s the latest we know about the second phase of the Embassy cultural center. If you have Embassy Square questions, send them to us, and we’ll try to get answers for everyone to see.