Many residents and borough councilors agree that the new carpeting at the historic Sanger Theater is looking a bit wonky.
In August, the city was the low bidder on a $73,100 contract with Scottsdale, Arizona-based Continental Flooring Co. to supply and install carpet tiles. Records show two South Mississippi companies submitted higher bids for the work.
Carpet tiles are patterned but appear to be randomly placed rather than placed so the pattern appears uniform.
The city proudly posted a photo of the carpet on its Facebook page on Tuesday, commenting, “Big things are happening at the Sanger Theater! New carpet installation is underway. This upgrade is part of our ongoing efforts to keep the Sanger Theater beautiful, inviting, and ready for unforgettable experiences. Stay tuned to see what’s coming next.”
The city post received 445 comments and 54 shares in 24 hours. Many of the comments were brutal:
“It looked like a cross between a Biloxi casino and a Victorian brothel – without the horrible mismatch. That rug was so ugly it hurt my feelings.”
“It’s a joke, right?”
“You still have time to delete this.”
But some reviewers thought the carpet looked nice and mentioned fond memories of the Saenger’s restaurant, which opened in 1929 and went through many renovations.
“So beautiful,” one commenter said. “Reminds me of the great theaters of Europe.”
At least one reviewer said the carpet tiles were not designed to match.
Continental’s Sanger project manager did not respond to requests for comment from The Sun-Herald on Wednesday about the work. During the Christmas period, city offices are closed Wednesday to Friday.
The city posted this photo and several others on Facebook, proudly displaying the carpet installation at the historic Sanger Theater downtown. Many commenters felt that the carpet tiles needed to be more uniform.
Councilors question cost and time for repairs
But Councilman Anthony Marshall, who represents Saenger’s District 2, said he plans to inspect the carpet.
“I just saw these comments online and had to read more,” Marshall said. “It doesn’t look good… We need to find out what’s going on.”
“I’m not satisfied just by looking at the pictures, but I need to see it in person.”
Marshall, who took office July 1, said he is also concerned about the time and money the city is spending on Sanger. The city closed the Saenger in 2018 because the building’s age was deemed unsafe. A reopening date has not yet been announced.
Restoration costs for 2021 are estimated at $5.3 million. The state Legislature has provided at least $2 million in recovery funds from BP funds from the 2010 oil disaster. City records show the city revised its budget in May to allocate $200,000 from city economic development to pay for Saenger’s interior work, including carpeting.
“This is one of the mayor’s favorite projects and I support it,” he said. “I want to see it done.” But, he added, “a lot of money was spent before I came to the city council and it still wasn’t open for business.”
