Willingboro council votes to introduce ordinance creating performing arts utility amid clash over manager contract

Willingboro Township Council introduced an ordinance on June 16 to create a Municipal Performing Arts Center Utility Fund that would establish the venue’s governance, a manager position and a separate budget for revenues and expenses. The move comes as the township prepares to open its new performing arts center this summer.

Council members and staff said the utility fund would let the township track the theater’s income and spending separately and decide whether management duties should shift from the current contractor to an in‑house manager. Manager Dwayne Harris told the council the fund would allow the center to operate with its own budget and return surplus funds to the township at year end while the township would cover any shortfall.

The discussion turned contentious when council members raised the size and scope of payments made to Ducket Entertainment Group, the contractor currently managing programming. Councilwoman Pum read portions of amended agreements and financial tallies she said showed Ducket had received $454,660 in payments and reimbursements related to theater management and festival activities. She asked the administration to explain what services the township had purchased while the theater remained under construction and why artist deposits and reimbursements were being routed through the contractor.

Manager Harris and contractor representative Bobby/Robert Ducket (identified in the contract as Ducket Entertainment Group LLC) defended the arrangements. Harris said portions of the amounts cited represented vendor deposits Ducket had advanced on the township’s behalf and then sought reimbursement for; he said Ducket’s contracted management salary was substantially lower than the total cited and that many of the larger entries were pass‑through costs for artists and vendors. Ducket told the council he had overseen procurement, technical specifications and programming work during long construction delays and that he had fronted certain deposits so events could be scheduled while council approvals were pending.

Council members pressed staff on timing and accounting. Several asked for clearer documentation of reimbursements and for a plan to avoid duplicate payments under the new utility structure. Harris said the Ducket contract expires June 30 and that, if council approves the utility and hires a manager, the township would not renew the Ducket contract.

Council voted to introduce Ordinance 2026‑17 (establishing the performing arts center utility) by roll call. The ordinance was introduced for public hearing and further consideration at a future meeting; no final adoption vote occurred that night.

What’s next: the council’s ordinance introduction begins the legal notice and public‑hearing timeline. Council members asked staff for clearer documentation of Ducket-related reimbursements and for the proposed utility’s final operating rules before a decision is made about renewing or replacing the existing contractor.