The Homewood Village Board got its first look at the proposed 500-seat Homewood Performing Arts Center.

The renovation plan for the Homewood Auditorium was presented at the Oct. 28 board meeting by Mike Matthys, principal at Linden Group Architects, who displayed visuals of what the auditorium would look like after the renovations are complete. The current goal is for construction to start in spring.

According to Homewood Assistant Village Manager Terence Acquah, the board in May approved Linden Group Architects to work on the renovations for the auditorium. The village also received a $1.3 million grant for the project from the state, he said. 

According to Matthys, the concourse level will pretty much stay the same in structure. Plans are for a more elevated style of seating. 

To eliminate echo, the design calls for installing sound absorbing panels on the ceiling, he said. 

The preliminary visuals show a wooden flooring with the addition of carpeted aisles. Since the budget is limited, the firm suggests maintaining some of the original structures and doing a clean-up of the space, Matthys said. 

“We’re looking at sort of upgrading the lighting so it doesn’t feel like a gym. We call it house lighting,” Matthys said. 

The visuals displayed elegant vertical linear lights installed on the side walls and some hanging from the ceiling. 

The proposed floor seating will be portable lightweight chairs for easier stacking and storage. There will be about 500 seats, with approximately 300 on the floor and 200 on the concourse, he said. 

According to Matthys, early in the planning phase there was discussion on extending the stage, but “what we ended up with is that it’s flexible. So we see that performances probably will extend out onto the floor, but there won’t be a built stage extension because that would take up floor space that could be used for something else.” 

The current estimate for all of the renovations is $1.28 million, which is just within budget. 

“I actually like the ability to maintain some of the characteristics of the building with the new modern build,” Trustee Phillip Mason said.

Trustee Jay Heiferman said, “what’s missing is performance lighting, and I know we’re holding back on that.” 

Heiferman suggested community involvement could help raise funds “to do basic stage lighting.” Basic stage lighting will be included in the engineering drawings and will be bid as an alternate, Matthys said. 

Mayor Rich Hofeld inquired about the restrooms. The existing restrooms on the first floor will be remodeled, and there is a plan to install two single-user toilets on each side of the basement level, Matthys said. 

Taking care of engineering documents is the next step in the process before the bid for the project can start. 

“Design bid is probably the best way to go with this process,” Homewood Village Manager Napoleon Haney said. 

There will be an update at the Nov. 11 meeting, Haney said.

Related stories:

• Homewood OKs auditorium lease change with Homewood Arts Council ahead of renovation (July 13, 2025).
• Homewood still planning downtown theater (April 15, 2021).
• Performing arts: Homewood Arts Council reintroduces itself to community (Dec. 6, 2023).
• Performing arts center on the horizon for Homewood (March 1, 2020).