From the Roundtable: Lessons unlearned: Theatre, YouZeum sinkholes sapped donor base

The recently announced — presumably temporary — suspension of activity at the Missouri Theatre Center for the Arts has some of us wondering whether Columbia has the means to support such ambitious projects.
The centerpiece, of course, was the complete renovation of the city’s largest movie palace, which cost about $10 million and ran about $4 million over budget. We remain hopeful that this will be resolved through some miracle while wondering about the overall outlook for artistic performance within this bijou of a theater built in 1928.
 Certain is the failure of the YouZeum in the old Federal Building, née Post Office on Cherry Street. This should not be a surprise to anyone.
The YouZeum organization bought the building from the Department of Education under the condition that it be used for educational purposes. Columbia College is awaiting approval from the General Services Administration for permission to acquire and occupy the 74-year old edifice, which the college is proposing to use for a variety of purposes. Meanwhile, the final tally of the dollars squandered on the YouZeum ran into the low millions.
 These two expensive ventures — one a complete failure and the other still searching for angels — are examples or well-intentioned but inadequately vetted noncommercial ventures that diverted contributions from basic charities such as the United Way and the Central Missouri Food Bank. Were any of us paying attention? There certainly is plenty of precedent for not asking questions when they should have been posed.
 You’d have thought the well-worn precedent of the library “remodeling” project several years ago would have stirred local scribes to investigate the YouZeum. The Fourth Estate was asleep. With virtually no publication of architects’ renderings and floor plans for the library, the wool was pulled over our eyes on what still stirs some residents into anger and resentment.
 Columbia is still a small town where we remain reluctant to upset our friends and neighbors by asking tough questions. The YouZeum was one person’s idea that snowballed into support from others. Pretty soon grants were rolling in, including one of almost half a million dollars from a foundation in Oklahoma and $850,000 from the Boone Hospital Foundation. The city doled out $350,000 from its hotel bed tax revenue.
The YouZeum’s theme was health education through interactive exhibits directed particularly at younger people.
 Many of us had our doubts, but we were reluctant to voice them. Why did we hesitate to ask questions? There were doubts about financing, especially how the YouZeum would be supported after it was completed. We were too polite, and the project barged ahead. We were also too polite about digging deeper into the Missouri Theatre renovation project, which is now some $2.5 million in debt and, according to the former director, needs $1 million to become financially stable.
 Any project is only as good as its leaders and the boards or advisors behind them. Boards should stop playing patty-cake and smiling like Cheshire cats. Those advising the operators of the Missouri Theatre should have included finance-centered individuals with business experience backed by bankers, lawyers and a certified public accountant.
At the same time, those of us on the Fourth Estate side of the table shouldn’t be so reluctant about asking the tough questions. The same applies to the rest of us.