Davenport to work with Junior Theatre to find new home
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The city of Davenport will help Davenport Junior Theatre find a new home after unanimously voting to approve the sale of its longtime home on the Annie Wittenmyer campus.
After hearing from many DJT supporters about their concerns for the beloved 72-year-old organization, aldermen all voted in favor of a plan by developer Chris Ales to create 99 units of affordable housing on the nationally recognized campus in the 2800 block of Eastern Avenue.
The project would not touch the 1905 former chapel, the 350-seat Mary Fluhrer Nighswander Theater, which presents DJT mainstage shows and hosts the Bucktown Americana Music Show every month (third Fridays from September to May). The city would have the option to buy or lease back the theater building (for $1 a year) for up to five years.
“This developer has a track record of doing things around this city,” Mayor Mike Matson said at Wednesday night’s City Council meeting. “We have tried to find folks to do something with this place,” he said of the Wittenmyer campus. “It just hasn’t happened. This is an opportunity to build some housing, to take an old historic place with a heck of a lot of restrictions to it and make it a better place.”
“We’re committed to Junior Theatre,” Matson said. “It’s too good of a thing, it simply is. We will do that and you’ve heard that.”
According to the city Parks and Recreation Department (which offers DJT classes and camps), the city is exploring options for DJT should the development project move forward. It requires conveyance of the property and rezoning in order to allow Ales (who has redeveloped the historic Kahl Building at 3rd and Ripley streets into apartments and a restored Capitol Theatre) to access needed funding to develop the property into housing.
“There is no question that the city is committed to Junior Theatre,” Ald. Marion Meginnis said at the council meeting. “This is not an opportunity that comes every day. We have brought other people through and no one has been interested in this property.”
“It is a very special and very unique property,” Meginnis said.
During the Civil War, Annie Wittenmyer (1827-1900) was one of the leading voices for better health care and nutrition for soldiers, and likely saved many thousands of soldiers from needless death by preventable illness or improper supplies, according to the DJT website. After the war ended in 1865, eastern Iowa (like much of the country) was left with many orphaned children. The Annie Wittenmyer orphanage was created, and served as a home for these children for many decades.
After the orphanage closed, the campus found new life by housing various activities, eventually becoming home to Family Resources and Davenport Junior Theatre (which now uses 10 of the former cottages). Family Resources in November moved most of its operations to 1414 W. Lombard St., Davenport.
After many residents spoke out about issues regarding the city conveyance of much of the 32-acre site for $1, Ald. Kyle Gripp said he understood their concerns, but said Wittenmyer and its 19th-century buildings are “a financial liability for the city.”
The city estimates that it would take at least $5 million to preserve the buildings in their current state, and up to $13 million to upgrade them to be used by other organizations.
Operating a theater out of “Civil War-era cottages isn’t exactly ideal and creates its own challenges,” Gripp said, noting it will cost less for the city to find DJT a permanent home.
“That will take time but it is a problem I am very confident that staff in conjunction with Junior Theatre can solve that,” he said. “What is not as simple a problem, is restoring historically significant Civil War-era cottages. There are considerable redevelopment challenges; we’ve been trying for a while and we haven’t had any takers.
“We have a developer who has the skills, the knowledge and a proven track record, is able to do it, and shown a willingness to redevelop the campus,” Gripp said. “I’m afraid if we pass on this opportunity, the opportunity won’t come back.”
He also said it was inaccurate to say the city has to choose between DJT and affordable housing.
“I’m deeply confident we are going to find a permanent home for Junior Theatre, and one that is better than the current situation,” Gripp said.
What’s the future?
“I’m actually pretty excited about it. Annie Witt has a huge history in our community, of being there for the community,” DJT board member Nicole Savatski of Davenport said after the meeting. “If this redevelopment is a way to keep that property alive and growing, and being used, personally I do support that.”
“It does make me worry about the future of Junior Theatre, but I hold the council at their word – that they understand our organization and they’re committed to helping support us in the future as well,” she said.
A community meeting will be held Saturday, Jan. 27 at Nighswander Theatre (2822 Eastern Ave.) to discuss next steps, hosted by Davenport Parks & Recreation director Chad Dyson and Davenport performing arts supervisor Daniel Sheridan at 1 p.m.
They want to get feedback on this transition process and what people want to see for DJT programs. Half of the 2,000 students served by DJT annually are from Davenport.
The second hour Saturday will consist of a facility tour/open house. DJT staff will be present throughout the campus to discuss various spaces and how they are used. Community members can choose to explore on their own using a map or take a guided tour with Sheridan.
“The goal of the Saturday meeting is just to make sure that we get buy-in from people in the community, that love the program, to get information from them,” Savatski said. “What would you like to see? What improvements would you like to see made? How can we best meet your needs as we transition into this new space?”
It will help the Parks & Rec Department know what the community wants and needs, she said.
Savatski is not sure what the status of DJT partnering with other Davenport schools in a potential new home might be.
“Nothing’s off the table – I was encouraged hearing Ald. Gripp talking about how we would have to find a facility that would work well and the city would be open,” she said. “It’s too early to tell, but our nonprofit is committed to working with the city to find a place that’s gonna work for all of us.”
The Davenport Community School District has had an exploratory conversation with the city about a potential partnership regarding DJT, said school district spokeswoman Sarah Ott. “This conversation was exploratory in nature and no specific requests by the city have been made at this time,” she said.
Public concerns
Ten Annie Wittenmyer cottages are used by the city and DJT for their scene shop, rehearsal spaces, board room, set pieces, paint studio, props storage, a tumbling program that’s grown substantially, classrooms, DJT museum, and costume shop.
Ashley Hoskins of Davenport, whose 7-year-old daughter participates in DJT, told the council:
“Davenport Junior Theatre gives kids a healthy space after school, on the weekends and over the summer, to go to gain confidence, socialization, and many new skills in a positive environment. It is also very affordable compared to other such private businesses.”
“My child and 2,000-plus others – many who can’t afford other private theater and dance programs in the Quad Cities, do not want to see Davenport Junior Theatre disappear,” she said.
“Please let DJT stay until another beautiful theater can be constructed,” Hoskins said.
Many people noted they only found out about this housing plan over the past week and pleaded with the council for more time.
One resident is a daughter of the former mayor (Robert Duax), who was in office in 1976 when the city acquired the campus. She asked what kind of accountability the new developer would have with the city, so there won’t be another tragic situation like what happened last year with the partial building collapse of 324 Main St., just across from City Hall.
“I hope that we’re not giving away the farm,” she told the council. “We keep doing this – we keep putting corporations before people.”
Kristin Meyer, DJT costume shop coordinator who’s been part of the program for 49 years, said: “This is such a historic and rich jewel. It almost was off the map 15 years ago.”
“We have incredible leadership through the Parks and Rec Department,” noting Daniel Sheridan (a DJT alum) came back with a master’s degree from University of Connecticut to revive the program.
“You could have gone to New York or L.A., but you came back to save a jewel because you believe in it, to grow it and to get it to a point where we’re all coming down to support it,” Meyer said. “It’s not because of a building; it’s because of the people and the legacy and the importance.”
“There’s really been no public discussion of the terms and conditions of this conveyance,” said Dennis Platt of Davenport.
Aaron Hook, a St. Ambrose University clinical instructor in the theatre program, said he can tell which students have gone through DJT.
“They come in with a confidence, an ability to speak publicly, and to express themselves that you don’t see everywhere,” he said.
Hook wanted the council to understand that “it takes a lot of time and work to move a facility like this,” he said. “I would hate for a generation of students to lose out because we sold off an area and we’re finding a solution, but those timetables don’t add up.”
Another resident cited concerns with traffic along Eastern and how that would be affected by new housing and agreed the city was trying to fast-track this plan.
Another resident said DJT isn’t being given enough time to find a comparable space.
“Consider the history of that land – it’s always been geared toward the children,” another resident said. “First, the orphanage, then Family Resources and Junior Theatre.”
She said the city is facing having to choose between opportunities for affordable housing and for children, and that’s not a fair choice.
The city faced a deadline of Feb. 1 for Ales to apply for the city Urban Revitalization Tax Exemption (URTE). That program encourages private investments in targeted areas of the city by providing an exemption on the increase in property taxes resulting from improvements. Bruce Berger, community and economic development director, said Ales needs site control to apply for that and for tax credits.
Ald. Tim Kelly, who represents the area, asked Ales about the types of housing he’s developing.
He is seeking state tax credits for housing targeted at people at or below 60 percent of the area median income. Up to one-quarter of the new apartments will be market rate, meaning it will be a true mix of income levels in tenants, Ales said.
“We do have a duty to act, even if it’s one small project at a time,” Ald. Jazmin Newton said of affordable housing. “I am very much in favor of this project, because it’s my understanding that this isn’t something that just happened overnight. The city has been looking for a developer to develop this unique property and keep it in its historic condition.”
DJT needs a new location where it has room to grow, she said. They also should have been part of the discussions a lot earlier, Newton said.
“I think we can learn from this, as a city, as a council,” she said. “When things of this nature come up, we should be talking to those affected and they should be a part of the conversation. We shouldn’t be making decisions without them.”
Development timetable
Ales has redeveloped historic Davenport buildings for over 20 years, starting with the former St. Katharine’s School – today’s Renwick Mansion (built in 1877) at 901 Tremont Ave., Davenport, and later the former Marycrest College campus.
For the old Buchanan School (2104 W. 6th St.), he converted that into senior apartments called Naval Station, after their use as a U.S. Naval Training Center. Ales’s other apartments in restored historic buildings are at 1101 W. 9th St., and 2504 Telegraph Road, Davenport.
He expects tax-credit funding for Wittenmyer campus to be awarded in September 2024. DJT will have to move out of seven cottages in June 2025, and can operate out of three cottages and the theater until December 2025. The state of parking and construction during 2025 are up in the air.
Other key parts of the project timetable are:
Feb. 6: Plan and & Zoning Commission vote recommending rezoning
Feb. 21/28: City Council public hearing/1st vote on rezoning
March 6/13: City Council discussion/2nd vote on rezoning
March 20/27: City Council discussion/final vote on rezoning
September: Tax Credit (Low-Income Housing Tax Credit) awards
February 2025: Deadline to secure necessary funding
Spring 2025: Council review/approval of plat/subdivision
June 2025: Anticipated closing (transfer) of campus – sign Junior Theatre lease
Summer/Fall 2025: Construction/Rehabilitation begins
December 2025: Junior Theatre vacates three cottages
December 2026: Construction complete – housing occupancy begins
For more information on DJT, click HERE.
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