Economic development comes in many shapes and sizes.

For Bridgton, town voters decided this week that a refurbished Magic Lantern Theater was worth foregoing about $30,000 of tax revenue a year for the next 20 years.

According to the town, 129 residents turned out for a meeting Tuesday night to vote on whether to create a special tax plan for the theater. Those who showed up supported a plan that will tax the new theater based on the value of the old theater.

Because of the long-term implications, town officials said it was important to give the final say on the tax plan to residents. Of Bridgton’s 4,900, the decision was made by a tiny minority of less than 3 percent.

The plans for the Magic Lantern sound impressive. The owners plan to knock down the old theater and replace it with a four-screen structure that includes live performance space and cabaret-style seating.

Like public investment in parks, public concerts, parking garages or what have you, residents supporting the Lantern hope it will help to draw people into town and increase economic activity. Considering that Bridgton’s population swells to about 35,000 during the summer, an amenity like a rejuvenated, multiscreen traditional movie house has the potential to draw thousands of vacationers away from their camps and into town.

The tax incentive provides the Lantern’s owners with some certainty that their $1.5 million investment will pay off.

During the next 20 years, Bridgton might miss the $600,000 or so of tax revenue it gave up, especially as property taxes continue to climb. But towns that want to grow have to be proactive and invest in their future, sometimes in creative and unusual ways. That’s the route Bridgton has chosen with the Magic Lantern.