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State gives JPR theater toehold Redding studio will go there first By DANI DODGE ASHLAND -- With assistance from the Oregon Board of Higher Education, Jefferson Public Radio is buying and renovating a 1935 cinema in Redding, Calif., for broadcasting and presenting live performances. "It isn't actually as far a stretch at first blush it might appear," said JPR executive director Ronald Kramer. "Predominately, people think of us as radio, but beyond that we do a lot of things: publishing, Internet and we've been a concert presenter for many many years." Additionally, the project will create a centerpiece for the revival of Redding's downtown. The theater -- which went from B-movies to vacancy a few years back -- will be returned to its early grandeur and provide a space for artistic and cultural events. "I can't think of any project in Southern Oregon that would be as central and electrifying as this is in Redding," Kramer said. Friday, the State Board of Higher Education unanimously approved $800,000 in bond financing requested by Southern Oregon University for the purchase and partial restoration of the Cascade Theatre. "SOU draws from a wide range of counties, not only Oregon but California," said board spokesman Philip Bransford. "There was recognition by the board that to maintain that tie is also good for the university system." JPR, owned and operated by Southern Oregon University, has the largest network of public radio stations and translators in the nation. JPR broadcasts to a 12-county region in Southern Oregon and Northern California. About 20 percent of the listening audience and membership is in Northern California, Kramer said. The Redding community will raise the $1.5 million necessary to complete the project. "We are very excited about the rehabilitation plans," said Redding Mayor Bob Anderson. "The first fund-raiser will be this week." Anderson didn't believe it was at all strange for his town of 80,000 in California to benefit from Oregon's largesse. "I think a lot of us in Northern California feel closer to Oregon than definitely Southern California," he said. "Rather than draw artificial boundary lines, we like to think more on a regional basis irregardless of where the state boundary lines happen to be." Kramer emphasized that the users of the theater will be paying back the bonds. "It's not as though we are using Oregon tax dollars because we are not," he said. Kramer noted that owning the theater will allow JPR to bring bigger and better acts to Southern Oregon because the performers can be booked for two consecutive dates. And this isn't the first time JPR has tried to buy a theater. In 1984, JPR made an offer on the Holly Theater in downtown Medford, but was told the building wasn't for sale, Kramer said. Kramer said, though, it was not the desire for a theater that spawned this project. The station's current Redding office was located in a building being foreclosed. From one day to the next, staff members didn't know if they would have electricity and water. They needed to move, but only a few buildings in Redding could provide the sightline JPR needs to reach its transmitter on South Fork Mountain. The Cascade Theatre was suggested. "It would not only serve our radio purposes, but was consistent with our general purposes," Kramer said. "Our purposes revolve around a commitment to education, cultural activities and public service ... and this is another dimension of that." In the first phase of the project, JPR will remodel the theater's art deco exterior and office space inside allowing it to relocate its Redding studio and lease to tenants. Already, JPR has commitments from a half-dozen people wanting office space in the historic downtown building, Kramer said. The radio station plans to move in sometime in the fall. During the second phase, JPR will conduct a local fund-raising campaign to raise the money necessary to restore the 1,300-seat auditorium to its original condition. Redding city manager Mike Warren predicting the blossoming of a great partnership. "The partnership between Redding and the Ashland/Medford area will be positive for both areas," he said. "JPR being the link will bring Redding and Chico people to the Ashland/Medford area and vice versa and the communities will get to know one another better." Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA