The Wharton Center and the City of East Lansing are partnering on a proposed $8 to $10 million cultural center in East Lansing.
The proposal has the Wharton Center managing the performing arts center that is included in the plans for East Lansing’s City Center II project.
The partnership would help the Wharton Center accommodate the many shows that come through East Lansing each year and would give the city a thriving theater, says Michael Brand, with the Wharton Center.
“Both of our small theaters are very over programmed and I have a very hard time getting to them,” Brand says. “We have more than 150 programs a year that range from Broadway to jazz.”
The city and the Wharton Center are working on designs for the project, which will likely include at least a 400-seat theater, Brand says. East Lansing City Manager Ted Staton says the space will be between 10,000 and 12,000 square feet and will connect to a parking lot by a skyway. It will also likely be next to the Naya Bistro & Wine Bar.
“This gives us a chance to have a theater right downtown next to an upscale restaurant,” Brand says. “I think we’re going to look at the stuff that appeals to the younger demographic. This would be the perfect environment for them.”
Source: Mikell Frey, City of East Lansing
Ivy Hughes, development news editor, can be reached here.
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