Friday, June 14, 2013
Longtime Odeum board president Frank Prosnitz steps down; new board members sought.
Less than five months after its grand reopening celebration, the Odeum announced Friday it would close for the summer and has named Bruce Rollins the new interim president, replacing longtime Odeum board president Frank Prosnitz. Prosnitz will remain a member of the board. The action comes after disappointing turnout for some recent shows, including John DePetro’s “Live at the Odeum” series. Board members have confirmed that the Odeum is about $25,000 in debt. “We decided to postpone our summer shows for three reasons,” said Rollins in an interview Friday. “We decided we wanted to concentrate on fundraising, to redesign and restock the board, and to figure out how we can become a true performing arts center. Having shows was going to …
Thursday, August 9, 2012
The language in the note says Erinakes heirs are owed $500,000 “whether at or after maturity.”
There is an apparent discrepancy between the language in a 1991 promissory note for the Odeum theater and what Odeum board member and lawyer Jeff Gladstone said last month about the board's obligation to pay off that note. “At this point there is no legal obligation to pay back the note," Gladstone said in July. "We are the owners of the property. There is no question to a certainly that we own the property." The promissory note filed with the $500,000 mortgage for the Odeum theater on Dec. 31, 1991, does not have an expiration date. EG Patch obtained copies of the note and mortgage deed from the Town Clerk's office. According to the note, payments must be made until the sum is paid “at or after maturity.” (The full text of the note is …
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
The building at 59 Main Street was in the Erinakes family for decades, but a recent title search says ownership was transferred to the nonprofit Odeum Corporation in 1991.
The Odeum Theatre belongs primarily to the Odeum Corporation, board member Jeff Gladstone told the Town Council Monday night. And, he said, since no mortgage payments were ever made, a $500,000 promissory note from 1992 is no longer valid. “At this point there is no legal obligation to pay back the note,” said Gladstone in a recent interview. “We are the owners of the property. There is no question to a certainly that we own the property." Stephen Erinakes disagrees. “In their mind, they acquired a piece of property for nothing,” he said Friday. Erinakes’s mother, Blanche, was the owner of the theater when the Odeum Corp. was established in 1991 as part of the move to transform the theater into a nonprofit organization. One of the …
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Town Council gets update on the Main Street theater — March 31 deadline not possible.
Good things are happening at the Odeum Theatre on Main Street, but they aren't happening quickly enough to meet the March 31 deadline imposed by both the Town Council and the Fire District Commissioners in January. It looks like a more realistic timetable might be June 1. Odeum board president Frank Prosnitz told Council members at their meeting Monday night that the theater seats are ready to be shipped back from the Michigan company refurbishing them, and that the ceiling and walls have been completed. The floor remains unfinished. The plan is for the floor to get a coating of epoxy, a stronger finish than the paint currently there, while the seats are still out. And the board has hired a new contractor, Bowerman Associates of …
Monday, December 19, 2011
A Champlin Foundations grant of $141,600 has been received.
Following an appearance before the Town Council Monday to announce a grant from the Champlin Foundations, members of the Odeum board of directors made a similar appearance before the Fire Commissioners Thursday night. After the theater had been dark for some time because of an inability to meet stringent new fire codes, both the Town Council and Fire Commission said the building would be put back on the tax rolls because it was not operating as a nonprofit. However both groups delayed action when Odeum President Frank Prosnitz asked for time to raise money to make the upgrades and reopen. On Thursday, Prosnitz told commissioners the check had been received and deposited, then repeated what he had told the Town Council. The theater seats …
41.660086
-71.449949
East Greenwich Fire District
284 Main St, East Greenwich, RI
/articles/odeum-board-tells-fire-commissioners-the-moeny-is-in-the-bank
504499
/locations/6032739
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
The theater has until Dec. 12 to show it has raised the necessary funds to open for business.
Odeum board president Frank Prosnitz appeared before the Town Council Monday night, seeking an extension before it has to begin paying property taxes that have been accruing since 2009. The Council granted an extension only until Dec. 12. The Odeum had operated as a nonprofit exempt from taxes and seeks to retain that status. It closed in 2007 because it did not have the funds to comply with stringent new fire code regulations. Those regulations (the result of the Station nightclub fire) were loosened last year, creating an opportunity for the Odeum to reopen for significantly less than previously thought. According to Prosnitz, the Odeum needs about $140,000 to open. It has applied for a Champlin Foundations grant for just over that …
41.6632
-71.45009
Main St & Melrose St, East Greenwich, RI
/articles/town-council-grants-odeum-brief-extension-remains-skeptical
/locations/5349598
LeeLee
9:06 am on Wednesday, June 19, 2013
This is so very disappointing. Here is a venue that could be revived EXACTLY like the Park Cinema was. The "Park" has a wonderfully eclectic group of shows. We go to their shows frequently. There are billions of baby-boomers living in the area. How about catering to their tastes? You'd fill the Odeum. I had seats for Peter Yarrow there for August, if I didn't call regarding if my tickets had been… more ›