Casino money cookin' in Hearst Center's kitchen

CEDAR FALLS | Workers at the James & Meryl Hearst Center for the Arts labored tirelessly throughout the day Wednesday to give the buildings kitchen a much-needed makeover.

The remodeling work has been underway since February thanks to roughly $13,000 in grant funds awarded by the Black Hawk County Gaming Association.

This state-of-the-art kitchen will adequately meet the diverse needs of the citys municipal arts institution, said Hearst Center Development Coordinator, Vicki Simpson. I am very indebted to the Black Hawk County Gaming Association, the Cedar Falls Art and Culture Board, Friends of the Hearst, and the Citys park and public works staff for their generous contributions to this project.

The Gaming Association distributes 5.75 percent of the Isle Casino Hotel Waterloo's adjusted gross revenues for community projects.

The nearly $20,000 project is funded by the gaming grant dollars, $4,341 from private donations and the rest from the Art and Culture Board funds. The funds will pay for new cabinets, expanded counter space, and new appliances, including a new dishwasher.

It is the first of several improvements planned for the center in the next few years.

Hearst Center Director Martin Arthur said the kitchen remodeling would have been impossible without the gaming associations grant.

Its been great to have those grant funds, he said. We might have been able to do a couple things but not a complete gut job like this.

Local poet James Hearst left his home -- built in the 1940s -- in the care of the city in 1983 under the condition that it be used as an arts center for the community.

In 1986 the city established the Art and Culture Board to oversee the Cultural Division, which includes the Hearst Center.

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Casino money cookin' in Hearst Center's kitchen