At its January 18 meeting, the Admiral Theatre Foundation Board of Directors has accepted an audit report from the Bremerton Certified Public Accounting firm of Hunt, White and Hurley, P.S. The audit covered the foundation’s fiscal year ending August 31, 2000.

A proud Kyle Kincaid, treasurer of the foundation, said, “The opinion was clean and no irregularities were noted. This is an excellent report for the theater and we are proud of our staff who operate the community’s business in such a way as to result in this successful audit.”

The Admiral Theatre, which presents 20 professional performances a year and hosts more than 50 community events, has annual budget of $850,000.

Admiral Theatre Executive Director Ruth Enderle added, “This is a banner year for us. We were able to meet our obligation on the $1.5 million construction loan from HUD, we ended the year with a small surplus. and now we have received affirmation that we are managing our finances appropriately. The Board of Directors deserves credit for its professional expertise and oversight of the theater’s business.”

The Admiral continues to rely on contributions from public and private donors to meet its financial needs. Of the approximately $350,000 needed each year, $114,700 is received from Hotel/Motel Tax from the City of Bremerton and Kitsap County. The balance is received from private donors and show sponsors. Enderle noted that theaters in other Washington cities typically receive anywhere from 12 to 20 percent of their annual budgets from public funds which are most often derived from lodging tax revenues.

“It is viewed as a good investment for communities to support their assets with funds collected from visitors to the community,” she said.