Locals concerned about the possibility of demolishing Memorial Hall for a new park can stop worrying.
The idea was DOA—dead on arrival.
Certainly, residents made themselves heard loud and clear. While there may be some questions about the appetite to raise local taxes to renovate the building, there is no question that the people of Hutchinson want this particular historic building maintained. Engagement at listening sessions held by the city showed that a majority of residents wanted to preserve the structure.
Moreover, the city and local partners are counting on millions of dollars from a new sales tax and revenue (STAR) bond district. Keeping Memorial Hall is a requirement for getting funding for the other projects—tearing down the building would mean turning down $13.5 million.
Those millions are coming to Hutchinson without increasing the local tax rate. Bringing in funding from the State of Kansas through STAR bonds is good for local taxpayers. That building isn’t going anywhere any time soon.
However, the STAR bonds will not be enough to fully renovate the building, merely to address some of the largest concerns. Time will tell whether this is the moment Memorial Hall finally gets all the attention it needs, or if Hutchinson will accept another partial renovation as they did almost three decades ago.
Hutchinsonians’ long history of supporting Memorial Hall extends even further back. In 1911, a local group petitioned the city to build a convention hall. Local voters passed a referendum 2:1, authorizing 50-year bonds for the construction of an amount not to exceed $125,000.
Calculating inflation over that period on a capital project like this is imprecise, but conservatively, that would be over $4 million today.
President William Howard Taft laid the cornerstone during his visit to Hutchinson on Sept. 26, 1911, and Kansas Gov. Walter R. Stubbs attended the grand opening of Convention Hall on April 9, 1912.
The historic nature of the building is without question, but that has not protected it from controversy. The most recent suggestion from city staff to demolish the building was not the first time that idea has been lofted and loudly rejected.
In 1994, Hutchinson City Commission voted to demolish what was then called Convention Hall rather than spend $1.74 million to modernize it and make it ADA-compliant. But the very next day, they voted to delay any demolition to 1996. More than 3,000 voters signed a petition to put the issue on a ballot. That referendum succeeded by a 2:1 margin, authorizing $750,000 in funds to make the building ADA-compliant, add fire alarms, and remove asbestos.
An August 1996 referendum to fund modernization of the building, by then renamed Memorial Hall, for $1.95 million—as well as providing $850,000 for renovations to the Fox Theatre—was defeated.
That November, the city put two different referendums on the ballot: one would have authorized spending up to $2.69 million modernizing Memorial Hall and adding air conditioning, and the other would have authorized spending up to $850,000 to demolish it. Both referendums were defeated, and demolition lost in a landslide.
The message was clear: don’t tear down the building, but don’t invest more taxpayer money either. Renovations remained incomplete for decades. In the years following, locals have lamented the lack of air conditioning and remarked that the venue could be better utilized, but there has not been sufficient will to foot the bill for renovations.
Perhaps this time will be different. Unlike the referendums from the 1990s, now there is funding available from outside the community for renovations. The STAR bonds will create the opportunity to finally bring Memorial Hall up to modern standards, but they will not be enough on their own. Hopefully, there will be enough local funding or other state tax credits to fill the gap. If done properly, the venue stands to be a major tourist attraction for the community. If not, a partial renovation may leave us pretty much right where we started.
Ideally, we can do it right this time and return Memorial Hall to its former glory as a centerpiece of Hutchinson.
-The Hutchinson Tribune Editorial Board