AUBURN – The future of a downtown arts center wasn’t settled Monday night, but the lines of debate are a little more clear after a city council workshop discussion.

Councilors were split on most issues concerning the future of the building; whether to support a full-time Great Falls Performing Arts Center in Auburn, whether to sell the building to Community Concepts and develop it as housing, or whether to put the matter on the November ballot and let voters decide.

“If we’re going to continue to ask the taxpayers if they want to pay for this thing, we need to let them have their say,” Councilor Ray Berube said.

Councilors didn’t settle anything Monday, but called for a second workshop meeting to discuss Community Concepts’ proposal.

“Community Concepts is possibly a player in this, and it could end up being a way to pay for the building and support Community Little Theatre,” City Manager Glenn Aho said.

Councilors currently have two plans before them for the 53,000-square-foot Great Falls School, currently home to the Community Little Theatre group and to classrooms for arts groups, musicians and charities.

Under the plan favored by members of the theater group attending Monday’s meeting, the city would help create a group to manage the facility. With city support, that group would fix safety and health issues right away and begin fundraising efforts. The group would divide the building’s rentable space more efficiently, increase rents and make itself self-sustaining within three years.

Community Concepts Inc., a social service agency and developer, proposed a different plan. The group would take over the building from the city and develop half of it for affordable housing. Its work would be paid with tax credits and federal grants from the Housing and Urban Development Auburn currently receives. Community Concepts would leave the theater area untouched, letting the city and theater group to figure out the uses for that building.

Aho said the umbrella group plan would be slower to redevelop the space but would ultimately cost taxpayers less. Community Concepts would be able to make significant changes to the building quickly, but the city could end up continuing to pay to support Community Little Theatre.

“If the theater group is going to become self-supporting, there needs to be a vision from the city,” Aho said. “If the city agrees that arts are important for that area, then I think the groups can start the fundraising they’d need to make this viable.”

The proposal for keeping the arts center downtown came from a study last year paid for by the theater group. That study recommended creating the umbrella group to handle renovations and marketing.

But councilors were more focused on one part of the study that called for a rapid renovation of the space, and that would cost between $7.5 million and $15 million.

“I’m not saying I’m for or against this, but if this was a business looking for a loan, it would be turned down,” Councilor Mike Farrell said. Farrell was skeptical about the numbers and whether the center could ever be self-supporting.

Community Little Theatre’s Mike Hubor said that’s not his group’s plan. The group favors the slower approach that would pay for renovations with rents and fundraising.

“We frequently get calls from people asking about renting space, but that’s not what we do,” Hubor said. “If there was someone dedicated to doing that, marketing and renting that space, it would be different. And if you rent the space and collect the rents, you will see your revenues change.”

Berube blasted Community Little Theatre and the other tenants for not doing more with the building. They could have organized themselves years ago and started raising money to build their center.

“The theater groups, the share centers, they’ve been perfectly happy to be there and do nothing and just ride on the backs of the taxpayers,” Berube said.

But Councilor David Young said he couldn’t blame the building’s tenants.

“I don’t think there’s a clear picture that gives CLT any share of responsibility for that building not being a success,” Young said. “It comes right back to us. We own that building. We’re ultimately responsible.”

Councilors Farrell, Berube and Herrick all said they wanted a referendum this November, asking voters if they’d accept a $12 million arts facility.

Councilor Ron Potvin said he wanted a motion on the next regular agenda pledging the council’s support for some arts center downtown.

Mayor John Jenkins said Community Concepts’ plan needed a fairer hearing. Aho said it would be on a future workshop agenda.