YC theater work going to bid

Two Yuba City City Council members pledged support for the city's downtown movie theater Tuesday.

Theater operators and a developer flew in from Santa Rosa to brief council on their plans to get the stalled project moving.

They're going to “value engineer” the project to shave some dollars off it. Then they'll go out for bids in the next 90 days in hopes that the construction boom had cooled off enough to get lower bids.

“Hopefully by later this year, we will have a project that we can start by early this spring,” said developer Larry Wasem.

Councilwoman Karen Cartoscelli and Councilman John Miller said they both support the project.

Miller said the majority of council would consider any additional “needs or wants that need to be looked at.”

That could mean more city money for the theater. Deputy City Manager Laura Duncan said that because of the construction market, there may be room for additional subsidies if the council is committed to having a theater in the downtown district.

The city has already put up $2.2 million in land for the 15 screen multiplex theater, the city's downtown redevelopment centerpiece. But the project's developers said bids have come in too high to make the theater pencil out even with the city's contribution.

Tuesday's meeting also marked the appearance of Councilman Dave Doolittle during the theater discussion.

Doolittle, a downtown property owner, had to recuse himself from previous meetings because of a possible conflict of interest. Previously, that meant a likely stalemate between four council members divided on the idea of additional money for the project.

Appeal-Democrat reporter John Dickey can be reached at 749-4711. You may e-mail him at jdickey@appeal-democrat.com.