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http://wwv~r. startribune. com/entertainment/onstage/90950204.html?elr=KArksUUUoDEy3 LGDi07aiU <br />,i <br />r <br />4 <br />Suburban arts centers ... Are they <br />worth it? <br />Burnsville Arts Center <br />Burnsville and other suburbs try to <br />figure out how to make their pricey, p <br />ublicly funded arts centers pay off. <br />By JON BREAM, Star Tribune <br />Last update: April 21, 2010 - $:37 AM <br />Lorna Powell couldn't erase the smile on her <br />face. It wasn't just comedian Sinbad's <br />performance that made her beam; it was also <br />the new Burnsville Performing Arts Center, <br />where he'd performed. <br />"This is wonderful," said the longtime <br />Burnsville resident as she showed off the <br />town's new $20 million jewel to a friend. from. <br />St. Paul. "What a great asset to the <br />community. I'm proud. to be in Burnsville." <br />Ask anyone who has been to the sparkling <br />new facility and its 1,000-seat main theater, <br />and they will. gush like a Twins fans at Target <br />Field. But the bad. news has been inescapable: <br />In its first year, the 16-month-old arts center <br />lost $533,599 -- about 20 percent more than <br />projected. <br />In the past two decades, arts centers have <br />been cropping up all over suburbia, from <br />Hopkins to Hudson, Wis. With its cultural Taj <br />Mahal, Burnsville is confronting a challenge <br />other Twin Cities communities have faced: <br />how to make a pricey, publicly funded arts <br />center work. That doesn't necessarily <br />happen. in a year or two, or even three. <br />But, ultimately, is it worth it to have a multi- <br />use arts center in your suburb? <br />'"Most definitely," said Gene Winstead, mayor <br />of Bloomington, where a $7.2 million arts <br />center was built in 2003. <br />"What should a city do?" said Winstead. <br />"Provide public safety and public roads and a <br />Advertisement <br />Y <br />,. <br />~~~~ r~~ <br />~ Ti~lU!R~[tAY, SEP'TEMBER' 't <br />°~, ~ ~, <br />Qnl' ~h1LE N~ rrt~~E>~~isT~>R.con~ '~~'~ <br />~~ c~a~wo • ~rr~rs~ <br />awa~mvero~esruwae«aun~n~sw,conr~euvo ri7~t5tiit~ cQem~ ., <br />Print Powered BY '_1~~ . ...,3 " ~ ` G?ynamic~ <br />Page 1 of 5 <br />http://www.startribune.com/templates/fdcp?1276288336622 6/11/2010 I <br />Tom Wallace, Star Tribune <br />