Westminster City Council
SUBJECT
Title
Study Session - Presentation of the TheatreDNA Study of the Rose Center, Including Community Engagement, Operational Analysis, and Business Plan Recommendation.
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From: Christine Cordon, City Manager
Requested by: Administration
Prepared by: Shaunna Hunter, Senior Management Analyst
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RECOMMENDED ACTION
Recommendation
Discussion only. Take no action.
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BACKGROUND
The Rose Center was developed under the direction of the Westminster City Council and opened in 2006. It was designed to increase community access to high-quality performance arts and cultural experiences, while providing a much-needed venue for corporate networking, holiday gatherings, and weddings.
The Rose Center is part of a lively civic core that includes City Hall, Westminster Senior Center, Orange County Public Library, West Orange County Municipal Courthouse, Coastline Community College, and Sid Goldstein Freedom Park and Vietnam War Memorial. Ample parking is available in the City’s parking structure, directly across the street from the Rose Center.
The Rose Center is comprised of:
Performance Theater Complex
• 17,286-square-foot venue.
• 398-seat venue with accessible seating.
• Tiered stadium seating configuration.
• Backstage private dressing rooms.
• Full theatrical lighting and audio systems.
Shared Spaces
• 5,823-square-foot lobby.
• An art gallery.
• Accessible restrooms.
• A concession stand.
• Venue management offices.
• Bridal suite, used by the ballroom operator.
• Floor-to-ceiling windows and skylights.
Banquet Facility
• 10,721-square-foot banquet room and kitchen, which includes a 6,300-square-foot ballroom that can be subdivided into three separate rooms, which can accommodate parties of 50 to 500.
• Outdoor patio that can accommodate gatherings, ceremonies, concerts, and commercial or private photo shoots.
• In-ceiling speaker system and audio-visual amenities (not operational currently).
Rose Center Management
Since its opening, the City has contracted with third-party vendors to operate both the theater and the ballroom. Initially, the ballroom was operated by Crystal Rose Catering, which operated onsite and managed all bookings, catering, and staffing for ballroom events. In 2018, the City released a formal Request for Proposal (RFP) and, through that process, selected Mastroianni Family Enterprises dba Jay’s Catering (Jay’s) as the venue operator. Jay’s has a robust event management portfolio, including event sales specialists, off-site catering facility and bakery, and experienced event staff that manage all events held at the Rose Center Ballroom and Outdoor Patio. The City’s agreement with Jay’s terminated in 2025, and they have operated on a month-to-month extension.
The terms of Jay’s agreement included a monthly lease payment of $11,500 and a profit-sharing matrix of 10% over a certain threshold. Jay’s was the exclusive caterer and venue operator at the facility. The City retained the right to hold a certain number of events in the ballroom annually at a free or reduced price. In August, Jay’s terminated their month-to-month agreement with the City and requested a single-day event extension. This event extension was approved at the September 10, 2025 City Council meeting.
The Rose Center Theater has been continuously operated by a non-profit theater operator, Friends of Abbey Centre dba Friends of the Rose Center Theater (RCT). RCT provides year-round theatrical, musical, youth, and cultural arts programming for the community. In addition to their own productions, RCT rents the theater to other user groups, cultural groups, dance companies, educational institutions, and traveling performers.
The terms of the RCT agreement are exclusive use of the theater, shared use of the lobby, and office spaces within the Rose Center. RCT does not pay facility rental lease for this privilege, but has made significant capital investment in the lighting, sound, and technical equipment required to operate the theater. They annually, and as needed, maintain this equipment and add to their equipment inventory. RCT staff consists of Executive Director Tim Nelson, Front of House Manager Sherre Titus, part-time event and technical staff, ushers, volunteers, and a board of directors. The City’s agreement with RCT terminated in 2024, and they have operated on a month-to-month extension.
Rose Center Maintenance
Over its 20-year history, the City has maintained the Rose Center's major components, including the HVAC, roof, electrical, landscape, patio hardscape features, and major infrastructure. Figure 1 - Rose Center Utility & Maintenance Graph provides a visual representation of the cost for utilities and maintenance from FY 2016-17 through FY 2024-25. This information is also depicted in Table 1 - Rose Center Utility and Maintenance Cost. The City currently pays for the entire facilities usage of Southern California Edison electricity, So Cal Gas, water, telephone, and maintenance on major facility components.
Table 1: Rose Center Utility and Maintenance Cost
Facility maintenance and upgrades have been performed by the City as well as both operators throughout their tenancy. When the ballroom operator transitioned from Crystal Rose Catering to Jay’s Catering, the City upgraded the lighting and purchased new ballroom chandeliers. Jay’s replaced the flooring in the ballroom, updated the bridal room, maintained the courtyard landscaping, and added patio lighting. RCT replaced all technical lighting and audio instruments, AV control boards, and projectors; in addition, RCT purchased and maintains the rose bushes in the front of the building, conducts minor maintenance, and performs minor facility improvements. The custodial services are a shared cost between Jay’s and RCT for the lobby including the restrooms, which is maintained through a mutual agreement. The Rose Center Ballroom and Theater maintain custodial services for their spaces by their respective operators. However, plumbing repairs and electrical system repairs are conducted by the City.
The City's Public Works Department tracks the major component repairs completed at the Rose Center by fiscal year. The cost and repairs are depicted in Table 2 - Major Component Maintenance and Repair. These costs are incurred and paid for by the City for the Rose Center and are included in Table 1 under “Maintenance.”
Table 2: Major Component Maintenance and Repair
Rose Center Study
City Council recommended obtaining an outside firm to evaluate and analyze the Rose Center operations and review the terms in the RFP. Staff conducted interviews with six firms and received proposals from four firms. In May 2025, the City contracted with TheatreDNA to initiate the study and conduct a comprehensive analysis of the Rose Center per council request. Study components included:
• Material Document Review
• Needs & Utilization Analysis
• Community Outreach and Stakeholder Engagement
• Competitor Analysis in the Region
• Operational Analysis & Governance Structure Analysis with RFP review
• Business & Operations Planning
• Final Recommendations and Presentation of Findings
Project Team - TheatreDNA with Assembly Arts
Founding Principal, Benton Delinger
Principal, Alex Hargis
Teresa Koberstein, CEO of Assembly Arts
Process of the Study
TheatreDNA conducted 32 stakeholder interviews; received 195 responses to the citywide survey; held bi-weekly project check-in meetings with City staff; met onsite with Jay’s Catering and RCT; toured and evaluated the facility; toured Westminster with the Economic Development Manager; and met with council members, commissioners, educators, and community groups. Jay’s Catering and RCT provided access to their operational internal documents, profit and loss statements, rental user groups contact information and met separately to provide more in-depth analysis of their respective operations.
After completion of their review and analysis of all documents, TheatreDNA prepared the Rose Center Planning Study Final Report (Attachment 1) and the Rose Center Planning Study Final Report - Condensed Summary (Attachment 2) for council review and discussion in the study session. The final study, along with all appendices, will be posted on the City website.
Summary of Recommendation Based on the Findings
Catering Side: After thorough analysis, TheatreDNA recommends that the City begin in-house operational management of the ballroom facility. To manage the ballroom, TheatreDNA recommends increased staff levels to accommodate the rental sales of the space, maintenance, and event management. They provided in the full report a forecast model of potential revenue from event sales and commission from vendors. There are initial start-up costs and differed maintenance tasks that must be completed before opening the venue.
Theater Side: TheatreDNA recommends the city continue to contract with RCT as the venue operator if RCT agrees to a more equitable operator agreement and invest in more staff. Should the City contract with RCT for ongoing services, the City will need to create a capital improvement plan to begin phasing out old performance equipment with newer systems that belong to the City.
Proposed Changes
• Hire dedicated sales & development staff.
• Add a monthly facility lease of $5,200 with an increase of 3% annually.
• Add a $2 Facility Fee on every ticket (paid or unpaid) to fund on-going maintenance of the facility.
• Add a booking priority matrix.
• Add accountability and transparency parameters include an annual user group list, regular profit and loss statements, quarterly or semi-annual updates to the Cultural Arts Commission, and a dedicated City liaison.
• Share cost for custodial services billed monthly to RCT.
• Coordinate bookings with ballroom and City staff.
• Joint marketing and cross-promotional activities with the ballroom.
In addition, TheatreDNA recommends creating a grant fund administered by the Cultural Arts Commission or other entity to be determined by the Council, which will encourage new or first-time user groups to use the theater at a reduced rate.
FISCAL IMPACT
None
LEGAL REVIEW
The City Attorney’s Office has reviewed as to form.
CONCLUSION
Built in 2006, the Rose Center is a valuable community asset featuring a ballroom, outdoor patio, art gallery, lobby, and performance venue all designed to serve the community’s cultural and civic needs. The TheatreDNA study offers a comprehensive analysis based on community engagement, stakeholder interviews, and a detailed review of data from current operators and City records. Through the TheatreDNA study, the City Council is provided with findings and recommendations to ensure the equitable use of the facility and to realign cost recovery models in a manner that best serves the community.
ATTACHMENTS
1. Rose Center Business Planning Study
2. Condensed Rose Center Business Planning Study
REVIEWED BY
Erin Backs, Finance Director
City Attorney’s Office
Christine Cordon, City Manager