Complete renovation of Indiana Theatre projected in 'teens of millions'

Cost of completely renovating the historic Indiana Theatre at Ohio and Seventh streets in downtown Terre Haute could run “in the teens of millions.”

Board President Chris Switzer, a county commissioner, provided that rough estimate during an update on the Indiana Theatre project at a Wednesday meeting of the Vigo County Capital Improvement Board, which owns the theater.

Switzer, however, noted that enough grant money is available that about two-thirds of the total would be available before local government would have to start matching the funding.

After the meeting, Terre Haute Mayor Brandon Sakbun — who is also the CIB treasurer — issued the following statement:

“The CIB is exploring a public private partnership with interested developers to avoid this entire project being funded entirely by grants and CIB funds.

Commissioner Switzer has handled the design of the project. The CIB Finance Committee has begun reviewing the CIB’s finances to determine what the board can afford with this project.

“As treasurer of the CIB, I take taxpayer funds very seriously. We want to ensure that funds brought in through the food and beverage tax are spent in a responsible manner and used on projects that transform the community. While Chris works with the design team, the finance committee is working to ensure the project is affordable and provides value to our community.”

The theater’s sign was taken down earlier this week and currently resides on the theater stage behind a velvet curtain. Vigo County History Center officials are in the process of deciding where on the building it will be displayed.

Switzer said that 211 residents attended when the theater recently opened its doors for a public tour and inspection. The building suffered another water leak in the past month, which cost $1,600 to repair.

Terre Haute businessman and philanthropist Greg Gibson donated the Indiana Theatre to the Vigo County Capital Improvement Board in February 2023.

Larry Bird Museum

The CIB is anxiously finalizing the details for next week’s grand opening of the Larry Bird Museum as reservations to visit it are arriving from as far away as Ontario and Arkansas.

CIB Vice President Terri Conley said the CIB is focused on Larry Legend, not any other VIPs who might attend the opening ceremony.

“This is about Larry — his journey, his life — and that’s what we’re going to concentrate on,” she said.

Bird will speak at the opening ceremony outside the museum, scheduled May 30 at 10:30 a.m.

His speech will be part of a day-long Hoopsfest of events including a ribbon-cutting, live music, family-friendly activities, food trucks, inflatables and a three-on-three basketball tournament featuring local high school athletes.

Hoopsfest will take place from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on Wabash Avenue outside the museum and is open to the public.

The Bird Museum itself will only be accessible to special guests on May 30 before opening to the general public May 31. Reservations for visitation times are required and can be secured for free at larrybirdmuseum.com.

It is not known low long Bird will speak at the ceremony, though Conley said, “I think he’ll have things to say after he sees the museum.”

Board members noted that it was the promise of the Bird Museum that convinced the Indiana Legislature to OK Vigo County’s food and beverage tax.

Convention Center updates

Terre Haute Convention Center general manager Tennille Wanner offered an update on the convention center’s business. April saw the center hosting 20 events drawing 3,449 guests, with revenue totaling $109,454.

The remainder of 2024 has 58 definitely booked events that will accrue $364,739, and 14 additional events that have been contracted totaling $114,017. Four events are definitely booked for 2025 with $56,161 in revenues and one has been already booked for 2026. Wanner said the convention center is now beginning to see threepeat business bookings.

A “fam event” has been scheduled for June 20 in which convention center executives will host about a dozen meeting planners from qualified businesses.

The Vigo County Convention and Visitors Bureau will offer a presentation about Terre Haute, and the planners will be shown nearby hotels and museums and be shuttled to local parks and the Terre Haute Casino Resort.

Wanner said she will conduct another familiarization tour in Terre Haute later this year as well as make a similar presentation in Indianapolis.

In a separate matter, Sakbun announced that his skydiving performance at the Terre Haute Air Show will be June 1. The exact time has not been scheduled, though he said he’d be arriving at the air show at 10 a.m.

The CIB’s next meeting is scheduled for June 26.

Editor’s note: This story was updated about 3:50 p.m. with addition of the statement of Terre Haute Mayor Brandon Sakbun, who also is the Capital Improvement Board treasurer.