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The Little White Church off of the Village Green in the Village of Homer will be getting a new life as the Center for the Arts in Homer has agreed to purchase the building for $1 dollar during the Village of Homer’s Board of Trustees meeting on Tuesdays evening.
“The Center for the Arts is humbled and honored to take the lead on restoring the “Little White Church” on the Village Green into a creative community center. We, like so many of our Homer neighbors, agree that saving and restoring the structure is so important to the fabric of the Village, and we look forward to working with our partners and professionals to see this project come to fruition.” The Center for the Arts said in a statement to X101.
As part of the purchase agreement the Center for the Arts will ensure that the Little White Church Community Center remains a “Creative Community Center” for the Village. In this the Village of Homer, Homer Central School District and Homer-based nonprofit organizations will be given a first option when utilizing the space in the building.
“The Center will develop a rental fee schedule and the Center will attempt to make bookings for non-profit organizations free of charge based on size and scope of each event to ensure that the facility operates for public benefit a Little White Church advisory council will be formed consisting of one member each from the Village of Homer, the Landmark Society of Cortland, and the Center for the Arts of Homer.” Village of Homer Mayor Said during the meeting.
Bookings and holds, with deposits, from the Village of Homer non-profit organizations will have a priority when the pre-booking occurs in November and in December priority will be given to non-for-profits, private, and for profit organizations for the following calendar year.
There will also be bookings available for the entire depending on availability. The Village of Homer and the School District will also have access to book the facility at no cost throughout the year for public meetings.
The Center for Arts will be able to book and hold events after all other Homer Village-based non-for-profits organizations/groups have had their opportunity to do so during the booking period.
Restoration work on the building is expected to take approximately between 2 to 5 years based on grant awards and construction scheduling, said Ty Marshall, Executive Director of the Homer Center for the Arts to X101.
