The City of Traverse City has requested that the Traverse City Film Festival (TCFF) vacate the Bijou by the Bay building by Monday, December 2.

That appeal follows a letter TCFF Founder Michael Moore sent to the city last Friday, which indicated that the organization intends to close the Bijou for good and terminate its lease on the city-owned building at Clinch Park. The theater has been closed since May.

In his letter, Moore cited projector issues, the challenges posed by the Grandview Parkway closure, and a shift in moviegoing post-COVID as reasons that operating the Bijou “has become cost-prohibitive.”

“We understand that it is no longer feasible for TCFF to operate the Bijou by the Bay,” City Manager Liz Vogel wrote in a letter to Moore Monday. “With that in mind, the City agrees to conclude our partnership with the TCFF for that property. We request that the TCFF remove all personal property from the building and return all keys by Monday, December 2, 2024. We will work with you to ensure a smooth transition.”

According to City Attorney Lauren Trible-Laucht, any real estate improvements TCFF did at the Bijou during the theater’s 11-year tenure in that space now “belong to the city,” per the terms of the lease. “Like, a new roof was put on; that’s the city’s,” she says. “Personal property like projectors and those things belong to TCFF.”

Moore needs to sign the letter “in order to formally memorialize the mutual termination of the [lease] agreement.” Provided that he does so, the matter will be placed “on an agenda for the City Commission to concur in the termination.”

Beyond the notice of intent to vacate, Moore’s letter last week also included his recommendation that the city allow the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians (GTB) to “take over the stewardship of the Clinch Park building and provide a Native American cultural space to be used for the greater good of our entire community.” In September, Moore even set up an initial meeting between Vogel, Trible-Laucht and representatives of the Tribe to discuss the possibility. Nevertheless, Vogel clarified in her most recent communication that the city hasn’t made any decisions yet on what’s next for the Bijou space.

“We understand that it is your wish that the future use of this building be utilized by the Grand Traverse Band and they have communicated their interest,” Vogel wrote. While I personally think this idea is interesting and viable, it is not my decision to make. The City Commission will need to determine next steps and processes to consider a future tenant for that city-owned property.”

Vogel’s email to Moore also contained attached communications between the city and the Tribe, including a November 7 email from Tribal Chair Sandra Witherspoon further detailing how the Tribe would hope to use the Bijou building.

“We propose the establishment of an interpretative historical center at the Bijou theater, dedicated to highlighting the history of GTB and related tribes of northwest Michigan, and the transformative changes that have occurred in our natural resources, lands, rivers, air and lakes and the tribe's ongoing efforts to restore both the environment and cultural heritage of the Indian community to its former ecological status and cultural vitality,” Witherspoon wrote.

Witherspoon added that the center would offer a mix of “interactive exhibits, educational programs, and collaborative events that engage visitors of all ages.”