City, county agree to lend a hand in saving theater

By MICHELLE MCLEAN
Another historic Main Street building has a new lease on life.
With the blessing of the Traill County Commission and the Hillsboro City Comission, ownership of the 90-year-old brick building will be transferred from the county to the city to the newly-created Hillsboro Preservation Foundation.
Hillsboro business owners Michael and Amy Bishop have formed the “Hillsboro Preservation Foundation,” a non-profit organization with saving the theater as its first assignment.
Shuttered for 40 years, the Traill Theater belonged to Traill County — thanks to a delinquent tax bill.
Michael Bishop had asked city commissioners October 5 to help him obtain the theater from the county and save the fledging foundation $1,000 in back taxes.
The county and the city have now agreed to a “simultaneous deed transfer,” passing the property from the county to the city to the Hillsboro Preservation Foundation “all in one sitting.”
The county will exercise the option of selling the old brick building to the city for a token $1 fee, instead of requiring payment of back taxes. The city will then turn the building over to Bishop.
Bishop agreed to cover all fees, estimated at less than $30.
“Saving the money is a big issue,” Bishop told commissioners. “We will use that money towards insurance and a worker’s comp policy for volunteers who will start cleaning out the building this winter.”
The entire paperwork process takes “a matter of minutes,” explained city attorney John Juelson. The paper shuffle limits the city’s liability, he added, minimizing concerns expressed by the commission.
Commissioner Kyle Stern voted in favor of the transfer after confirming that the paper exchange “would not cost the city a dime.”
Bishop said he has had the building inspected by a mason who has deemed it “sound.” He has an insurance company prepared to provide coverage once ownership is transferred.
Out of operation since the mid 1960s, the Traill Theater and its long-dark neon sign is still a familiar landmark on Hillsboro’s Main Street.