West Des Moines will give the owner of Val Air Ballroom up to $1.2 million to help with its historic renovation.

The City Council approved a development agreement with Sam Summers at its meeting Tuesday. The city will give a 10-year property tax rebate of $1.1 million and a development grant of $72,000 to the project.

In exchange, Summers agreed to finish renovations by Dec. 31, have a $5.5 million minimum assessed value of the building and create or retain 14 full-time employees.

Summers, who organizes the Hinterland Music Festival and owns the music venue Wooly's in the East Village, plans a $14.5 million top-to-bottom renovation of the 84-year-old Val Air Ballroom, 301 Ashworth Road in West Des Moines, to prepare the venue for bigger acts. An Instagram post from late December shows a gutted ballroom with promises to post more updates in 2023.

More:The future of the Val Air Ballroom includes $5 million renovations and 'a little bit of everything'

Plans include new electrical, plumbing and sprinklers as well as ADA-appropriate accessibility options such as an elevator. He also plans to add a bar and grill in the basement, two new bathrooms on the first floor and improve production capabilities by adding a steel structure above the stage that holds cables, motors and lights that will allow artists to use screens and other stage elements.

The renovation will return the venue to a look evocative of its prime in the 1950s.

Ultimately, when the venue does reopen, Summers previously told the Des Moines Register he hopes the changes continue to deepen the variety of talent frequenting the Des Moines music scene.

"Really just being able to service the artist and the market at every level is something that’s super important to me," Summers said. "I think this 2,500 (capacity) club is going to be an important piece of the puzzle. We’re moving closer and closer to having everything covered here.”

In September, Gov. Kim Reynolds gave Summers $1 million from the Destination Iowa fund, created with federal funds provided by Congress as part of last year's American Rescue Plan Act, a coronavirus relief bill. At the time, he said he also planned to apply for $1 million in redevelopment tax credits and $2.2 million in state historic tax credits.

Kim Norvell is the editor of the Ames Tribune and the communities reporters covering Des Moines and its suburbs at the Des Moines Register. A native of Omaha, Neb., Norvell graduated from Iowa State University and claims both great states as her home. Before joining the Register, Norvell spent five years as a reporter in St. Joseph, Mo. She can be reached at knorvell@dmreg.com or 515-284-8259.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: West Des Moines gives money to Val Air Ballroom renovation