Signal Mountain council and MAC directors begin talks on town-funded director, oversight and transition plan

The Town of Signal Mountain Council on May 12 heard an extended public discussion and a question-and-answer session with the co-directors of the Signal Mountain Elementary School Preservation Fund about a proposal for the town to fund a full‑time director for the Mountain Arts Center (MAC) and possible operational arrangements ahead of the current lease and memorandum of agreement ending next year.

The discussion matters because the preservation fund has run MAC programming and renovations for years, the co-directors said, and the town would be asked to pay for a director, utilities and operating expenses while the preservation fund would continue programming and capital projects under a negotiated structure. Council members said the proposal could affect the town budget and directed a council member to meet with the preservation fund to develop a transition plan and negotiating framework.

Public comment and questions to the co-directors filled much of the meeting. Several residents asked for greater transparency, regular reporting and council-appointed board representation if town money is used. One commenter urged that any board overseeing MAC be subject to…