Executive Director Sarah Tacey estimates it will take $15 million to $20 million to fully rebuild the foundation’s facilities.
INGRAM, Texas — The long road to recovery continues for the Hill Country Arts Foundation in Ingram. The nonprofit was heavily damaged July 4 after catastrophic flooding along the Guadalupe River.
Executive Director Sarah Tacey estimates it will take $15 million to $20 million to fully rebuild the foundation’s facilities, which include offices, an indoor theater and a fairly new ceramics studio. All were lost in the July 4 floods, leaving the facilities currently fenced off.
Tacey said these last four months have been scary.
“Unsettling,” she said. “You don’t know what the next step is. I have a business degree and a theatre degree, but no one tells you what the first step is after something like this.”
Despite the devastation, Tacey said the foundation’s outdoor theater, located right on the river, remains a symbol of resilience. Though its walls were torn away, one curtain and the main structure still stand.
“It did exactly what it was supposed to do,” Tacey said. “It’s very rebuildable. FEMA was impressed with how it was built, so they’re allowing us to leave it in place. The structure is still in great shape.”
Replacing theater curtains alone, Tacey said, could cost thousands.
“This is a home to a lot of people,” she said.
She said the goal is to reopen the outdoor theater by next summer, though that depends on both time and money.
As for the other facilities that will take time, but the goal is rebuild them.
“We are going to rebuild in a higher area, further away from the river,” she said.
Lastly, Tacey said she has felt a range of emotions and had this message to share.
“Don’t forget about us,” Tacey said. “We have hope, and we hope everyone shares that with us.”