Paramount operations and AP 3/VenueWorks contract prompt community calls to protect arts programming

AP 3 told the Ashland Board of Commissioners it intends to operate the Paramount Arts Center as part of a combined facility once the conference center is complete and said an interim, six-month operating fund would be required to keep the theater open during transition.

Sam Howard said AP 3 would be the contract holder with VenueWorks as a teaming partner and that the city would retain levers in the contract to remove an operator if expectations were not met. AP 3 provided a pro forma budget showing a six-month startup cost "as an estimated cost" and said the figure of roughly $319,000 was an estimate for operating and booking funds, not a single grant check to any operator.

Why it matters: PAC Inc., the nonprofit that had managed the Paramount, emailed the city a notice of nonrenewal on Nov. 20 and — as reported in the meeting — asked the city for a $20,000-per-month subsidy before it would consider extending its agreement. City representatives and AP 3 said the city budget contains no current general-fund allocation for Paramount operations and that state convention funds could potentially provide interest earnings to support interim operations if drawn under the Commonwealth’s rules.

Public commenters, longtime volunteers and arts staff urged guarantees for mission-based programming and protections for incumbent staff. Matt Hammond, the Paramount education director, said staff had been told they would be laid off Jan. 1 and asked the commission to include education staffing in the AP 3 contract; he described the Paramount’s youth reach, saying more than 200,000 students visited the arts center for youth education over his tenure. Robin Hale, a longtime volunteer and former manager of Backstage Players, urged the city to keep the Paramount’s local mission, not to "give it away" to an outside operator, and recommended advisory-board involvement to preserve community programming.

AP 3 responded that incumbent employees would be "offered the opportunity to continue in their position as subcontractor employees" under VenueWorks for a 60-day evaluation period and that employees performing satisfactorily would be retained. AP 3 also said it has proposed an advisory-board structure and contract clauses to protect community mission programming (festival events, youth programs and the Paramount Players) regardless of operator.

Disputed claims aired at the meeting. Some public commenters and social media posts had criticized VenueWorks as an out-of-state operator with poor local track record; AP 3 disputed those portrayals and said the contract is with AP 3 (a Kentucky entity) and that VenueWorks would be a subcontractor. Speakers also disagreed about whether the Paramount had been instructed not to book events — PAC Inc. and some board members said there were constraints; AP 3 and city officials said they had not instructed PAC Inc. to stop booking shows and that communications had been confused.

What’s next: Commissioners said the negotiations and contract terms — including protections for arts education and advisory-board roles — will be addressed in the next commission meeting; the commission scheduled continued discussion and invited PAC Inc. and community stakeholders to participate in contractual drafting and advisory-council design. PAC Inc.’s chair, Bill Boykin, said PAC Inc. "isn't going anywhere" and that continued dialogue is needed to reach a sustainable operation model.

Representative quotes in this article are taken verbatim from the meeting transcript and attributed to speakers who identified themselves in the record.