Leaders at the City Springs Theatre Company are worried that a potential change to the Sandy Springs Performing Arts Center’s Presenting Partner program may impact its ability to produce world-class shows.
Executive Director Natalie DeLancey spoke during public comment at the Feb. 3 Sandy Springs City Council meeting. A dozen or so residents showed their support for the local nonprofit theater company at the meeting.
The theater company’s studios and offices are tucked within the Northridge Commons office park in Sandy Springs’ North End. Since 2017, the nonprofit has reached more than half a million people through main-stage productions, student matinees, and arts education programs.
The city’s Performing Arts Center and the theater company are separate entities. CSTC pays around $500,000 a year to use the Byers Theatre for its productions.
City Springs Theatre Company leadership wants a seat at the table during discussions about how the Presenting Partner program will be adjusted, the details of which have not been revealed by city officials.
City undergoes review
Executive Director Natalie DeLancey said CSTC is engaged in productive, forward-looking discussions with the city to further strengthen its partnership and continue delivering meaningful value to Sandy Springs residents.
“We understand that the city [of Sandy Springs] is evaluating potential changes to the presenting partnership program,” DeLancey said. “At the same time, we are actively finalizing and budgeting our ninth season. Despite rising costs across the industry, we remain committed to maintaining stable ticket pricing for our patrons.”
While proposed changes and their impacts are unclear, DeLancey said she heard the city is planning to request formal proposals for partners, including from City Springs Theatre Company.
“To ensure long-term sustainability, nonprofit organizations must operate within carefully structured budgets, so any significant financial changes require thoughtful planning and partnership,” DeLancey said. “As the largest renter and leading driver of attendance in the building, I am confident that together we can build an even stronger collaboration that benefits both the city and the community we serve.”
With an announcement of its ninth season days away, leadership at the City Springs Theatre Company has more questions than answers.
Sandy Springs Performing Arts Center Director Bill Haggett said the city is reviewing the Presenting Partner program to ensure it remains clear, consistent, and equitable for all organizations that use its facilities. Haggett said the city does similar periodic reviews on all programs and partnerships.
“A central goal of this review is to maintain an open and fair process that supports a broad and diverse range of programming for our community,” Haggett said. “We want to ensure that the guidelines under which we operate provide transparent expectations and access for both existing and future partners.”
During the city council’s annual retreat in early February, Haggett said the PAC was working to finalize its Presenting Partner program.
“We’re working diligently to find a good program that increases programmatic diversity, allows participation from a larger portion of the community, but still maintains the integrity and the partnerships that we do have now,” Haggett said.
Program changes unclear
In the city’s 2026 budget, elected officials opted to include a $200,000 transfer to the Performing Arts Center from the city’s general or operating fund for the first time since 2022.
During budget workshops leading up to the budget’s approval last June, high-ranking city officials discussed the PAC’s Presenting Partner program. According to city documents, “unless there [was] a desire to provide a transfer from the General Fund to cover operational costs, the PAC [was] not in a financial position to make changes to the Presenting Partner program.”
Typically, the PAC receives the bulk of its operational funding, now up to more than $2 million a year, from the city’s hotel/motel fund. Sandy Springs collects a tax of 7 percent on room nights and expects a total of $5.56 million this year in its hospitality fund.
The Sandy Springs PAC’s total budgeted revenue in fiscal year 2026 is $8.68 million. Approved expenditures total $8.99 million, split between personnel and operations.
During budget discussions, it appeared potential impacts could end up benefiting local nonprofits. City Manager Eden Freeman said the PAC would “be able to expand the Presenting Partner program to provide additional incentives to nonprofits who wish to be or continue as Presenting Partners.”
Theater’s local impact
City Springs Theatre Company leadership says the nonprofit’s partnership with the city and its performing arts center is critical.
Jan Collins, a longtime Sandy Springs resident credited with floating the idea for a city-based theater company in 2016, said musicals and plays help create a community feel in the city.
“City Springs Theatre Company has helped bring that feeling to fruition,” Collins said. “CSTC has created musical theater at the highest level for delighted and grateful audiences. For Sandy Springs residents, our theatre has brought us together with great community pride for having our own brilliant musical theater company right here at home!”
DeLancey said restaurants near downtown Sandy Springs, like Brooklyn Cafe, see huge jumps in revenue on show nights.
“The economic impact is substantial; it helps us develop strong partnerships with local businesses,” DeLancey said. “We want to make sure that we’re always sustaining that for the local businesses, hotels, and shops … that is very important to us.”