CHAPTER TEN O: THE BOARD’S CONDITIONS
The preservation board released a preliminary list of conditions four days before the hearing.
The theater’s supporters would need to demonstrate a realistic repair schedule, an independent safety process, and a management structure that did not depend entirely on Walter.
Imani spread the document across a library table while volunteers gathered around her.
The first condition concerned the building’s exterior wall, which had developed a crack above the service entrance.
The second concerned access for people who could not use the steep auditorium stairs.
The third required a plan for electrical repairs before any public performance could resume.
A volunteer named Hugo said that the list was designed to make preservation impossible.
Celia, who had joined the meeting to explain the engineering terms, disagreed.
She said that the conditions were serious because the hazards were serious.
Imani asked everyone to identify what they could do rather than argue about the board’s intentions.
Tomas offered to inventory the existing sound equipment and remove damaged items from the proposed reopening budget.
Leona volunteered to contact community theaters that had completed accessible renovations.
Peter suggested that the committee invite a disabled audience member to review the proposed entrance rather than assume the plans would work.
Nora asked who would take responsibility for maintenance after the first exciting year had passed.
The question silenced the table.
Imani admitted that their draft budget relied heavily on one-time donations.
Daniel suggested a limited schedule of paid rentals to support basic upkeep.
Hugo objected that commercial rentals could crowd out community groups.
Peter proposed reserving a minimum number of free rehearsal hours before opening the remaining calendar to paying users.
The group debated the suggestion for nearly an hour.
Nora watched Imani reject three attractive promises because nobody could explain how to keep them.
By evening, the committee had a revised operating plan with clear responsibilities and unanswered questions marked openly.
Celia praised the honesty of the draft but warned that the repair estimates remained preliminary.
Imani thanked her without asking for reassurance.
After the meeting, Hugo stayed behind to stack chairs.
He told Nora that he had joined the campaign because his mother once sang on the theater stage.
He had imagined saving the building would mean defending her memory.
Now he spent his evenings discussing insurance, accessible doors, and cleaning schedules.
Nora said that the ordinary details might be what allowed another person’s mother to sing there someday.
Hugo nodded slowly and lifted the last chair onto the stack.
