La Grange Theatre Owners Say Proposed Ticket Tax Would Hurt Business

A proposed amusement tax on tickets sold at the La Grange Theatre would hurt their bussiness and others in downtown La Grange, owners said Monday.

David Rizner, co-owner of the , said the theatre was, "definitely against," the village adding a tax on tickets. Increasing ticket prices in a way that would not add revenue to the theatre would hurt the business' ability to remain relevant in the market, Rizner said.

The idea of adding has been brought up several times in recent Village Board budget discussions by Trustee Michael Horvath as a way to raise revenue for the village. Horvath has said previously that he supports the idea of an amusement tax because it would not single out La Grange residents, but be applied to anyone that uses the theatre, many of whom do not live in La Grange.

, discussion of a possible tax got mixed reactions from La Grange trustees. Trustees Horvath, Jim Palermo and Bill Holder said they were interested in getting more information from staff about a possible tax. Trustees Jeff Nowak, Mark Kuchler and Mark Langan said they did not support a possible amusement tax, or did not want village staff spending time looking into the matter. In the end, Village President Liz Asperger instructed staff to look into the matter, but to not make it a priority.

Rizner said he would be more supportive of a sales tax increase, which could be shared with other businesses in downtown La Grange. At the moment, the only business that would be hurt by the amusement tax was the La Grange Theatre, he said.

"It's basically a 10 percent increase on admission and does nothing to invest in the business," Rizner said of the possibility admission would be raised 50 cents by the tax. "It would hurt our ability to maintain our position in the market."

Rizner said he worried about patrons feeling like and said more customers would opt to go to a larger theatre, or use a DVD service like Redbox if prices increased. Less patrons at the La Grange Theatre would also be bad for many businesses in downtown La Grange who are helped by theatre-goers who buy ice cream, or go to dinner as part of a night at the movies in La Grange. 

In the most recent discussion by the Village Board, Trustee Palermo suggested that the theatre should be taxed because it received funds from the village's Tax Increment Financing (TIF) district for its renovation.

Rizner disagreed, and said he believed that trustees and residents supported the theatre getting TIF funds to preserve the theatre's history as a destination in La Grange, which a tax could then undo. The theatre is also facing some big expenses in the near future, Rizner said, which include repairs to its roof and switching over to digital projectors. Rizner said he believes that by the end of next year the theatre will have to move to a digital format due to film reels becoming less available as movie studios push a transition to digital.

Rizner said the theatre is doing well financially, but was by no means, "raking in a ton of money." The theatre is able to support its operations, he said, which was the idea behind keeping a low cost entertainment venue in the community in the first place.

What do you think? Would raising prices on theatre tickets reduce attendance? Would an amusement tax on tickets in La Grange have a cooling effect on local entertainment options? Would other businesses be less likely to put on ticketed events to draw people to La Grange? Tell us in comments.