“Economically, we’re supporting a private business and I don’t think the other business owners in the community would really appreciate that.” Over a month has a passed since the heated debate over the Swan Theatre ensued during that, now infamous Blue Ridge City Council Meeting in October. During the debate, seemingly two sides came to light among council members. On one side, Council Member Michael Eaton showed himself the undeterred supporter of the Swan Drive-In Theatre, seeking to preserve the Theatre. On the other side, the more pragmatic voices of Mayor Donna Whitener and Council Member Rhonda Thomas seeking only to establish a fair lease for the Theatre and to be good stewards of taxpayer money. On October 25th FYN interviewed Eaton and heard his position on the situation. Now, we present Council Member Rhonda Thomas’ position. We recently we sat down with Council Member Thomas to hear her side of the story.

At the October meeting, concerned citizens came to hear if rumors about the Swan were true. They heard that the City sought to close the theatre or sell it off. They came to voice their support for the theatre, through shared nostalgia and, many citizens defended Swan Operator Steve Setser. During the discussion, Eaton explained the need for a new lease and said that one had been drawn up and only needed to be signed by the Mayor. Whitener, though, said that the City needed to conduct more research into the matter before signing any lease. Eaton, however, was eager to move ahead with the lease and make good on an insurance claim to fix the screen at the Swan that he said was damaged in one of last spring’s storms. But, Whitener and Thomas’ concern is the price of the lease, in short, the price of rent that Swan Operator Steve Setser pays to the City. Whitener and Thomas feel the lease or rent, $500, is significantly below fair market value. At the meeting, Whitener rhetorically asked how she should explain to other business owners who rent from the City why their rent is market value and Setser’s is far below market value. Whitener and Thomas’ argument, here, is that it seems to other business owners in the City that Setser is getting special favors. In our exclusive FYN interview with Thomas, the council member defends her position on the Swan Theatre, expounding her reasons for her position.

“I will guarantee you one thing,” she said, “If I’m on the City Council, if Donna’s the Mayor, if we have the City Council Members we have, we will never let the Drive-In fail.”

Thomas said that she, like Eaton and other supporters of the Swan think the Theatre is a boon and something special and unique to Blue Ridge. Thomas agreed that the Theatre holds nostalgia for folks in town, brings visitors to Blue Ridge, and that drive-in theatres are becoming a rarity—only four remain in Georgia. On the other side of the equation is the business aspect.

“Economically,” Thomas said, “we’re supporting a private business and I don’t think the other business owners in the community would really appreciate that.”

Admittedly, though, she said that the Swan is unique in one sense, but argued in another sense the theatre is similar to other businesses in the City.

“We have several other people who rent from us,” she asserted, “the Train Depot for instance. Wilds Pierce rents the depot from us, but he pays fair market value. 60,000 people rode that train last year…should we reduce his rent to $500 because he brings in all this other revenue?”

Although, the City has yet to have the drive-in land appraised, Thomas said that the Train Depot land would be an appropriate comparison, because, she said, they are both entertainment and tourists businesses. When asked why an appraisal of the land has not been done, she said that the Council urged Eaton to have one done. However, Thomas said Eaton rejected this idea. Thomas, a real estate agent in addition to her duties as a council member, estimates the monetary value of the 18 acres of the land including the buildings of the drive-in from anywhere between $900,000 to $1 million with an approximate monthly payment of $2000.

“If he’s not able to pay the fair market value, he doesn’t need to be in the business… he needs to turn it back over to the City,”

Thomas quipped.

“To me,” she said, “we should look at, what is he renting? He’s renting our land plus he’s renting our buildings”

Another one of her concerns is Council Member Eaton’s involvement with the lease. According to Thomas, Eaton, himself, drafted the lease that he is urging the Mayor to sign. The document locks the City into a 26 year lease, transfers responsibility of grounds and buildings to Setser and restricts the facility to operate only as a drive-in. Also, Eaton’s lease includes a rental schedule that begins at $500 a month for both, land and buildings (his current rent), increases to $750 over the next 10 years and tops-out at $1100 in the last five years, which is still fathoms below market value, according to Thomas. Further, Thomas condemns Eaton’s rogue drafting of the lease.

“We’re probably setting ourselves up for a lawsuit; we have a council member running around writing leases,” she said, adding, “Our job is to create policy, not to create leases.”

But, she suggested the lease should only be a four year lease, not a 26 year one and have opt-out clauses for the City, and establish a rent based on fair market value.

Council Member Thomas also answered Eaton’s claim of land usage. In Eaton’s interview with FYN, he said that if a drive-in did not occupy that land, he did not know what else could go there, saying that commercial property is dead in Blue Ridge. For Thomas, though, plenty of businesses could use that land, suggesting a hospital, apartment complex, or an assisted living facility could use that land.

Another point of contention is the insurance. In the spring of 2011, when the City discovered it owns the buildings of the Theatre, it extended its insurance policy to include the buildings. Shortly following the move, a claim was made on the screen. Eaton says it was damaged in a spring storm and needs repair, but Thomas countered that the claim raised a red flag with the insurance company, implying a case of fraud. As such, the City may soon send an insurance adjuster to the Theatre to confirm and assess the damage.

So, we are left again with that, now perennial question: What is the fate of the Swan Theatre? When asked how the issue ends, Thomas said it doesn’t until the proper process is followed and dialogue with the elusive Mr. Setser begins.

“He(Setser) needs to come in and talk to Donna and, then Bill (the City Manager) and Donna need to convey to the Council what we need to vote on and they need to talk to our attorney, get the lease written and let us either approve it or suggest changes.”