Vinings GA Real Estate

the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre (CEPAC) and to promote the long-term success of the

landmark cultural and entertainment venue.

The Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre Foundation will secure financial resources for CEPAC

and act as a fiduciary of those resources. Funds raised by the foundation will support

construction of the facility’s current design and establish an endowment to secure its future and

expansion.

“It is not unusual for performing arts centers to have difficulty achieving a positive financial

position, especially in their early years,” said Barbara E. Williams, foundation president. “The

foundation is committed to obtaining the funding that will build and sustain the Cobb Energy

Performing Arts Centre as a state-of-the-art facility. Our mission is to make it as successful as

possible.”

Foundation support, Williams said, will supplement revenue generated by CEPAC. In doing so,

the foundation will underwrite educational programs, community outreach initiatives and other

activities that typically do not produce significant income, but that are part of CEPAC’s mission.

To guide its efforts, the foundation has assembled a distinguished and enthusiastic board of

directors. Joining Barbara Williams on the CEPAC Foundation Board are Jack T. Demarest,

retired banker and currently a consultant for the Community Bank of South Smyrna; Dwight

Brown, president and CEO of Cobb Energy Management Corporation, for whom the CEPAC is

named; John A. Williams, president and CEO of Corporate Holdings, LLC, past chairman of the

Cobb-Marietta Coliseum and Exhibit Hall Authority, and founder of Post Properties, Inc.; and ex

officio director Earl E. Smith, chairman of the Cobb-Marietta Coliseum and Exhibit Hall

Authority, and founder and chairman of the board of E. Smith Heating and Air Conditioning.

Barbara Williams is a former Cobb County Commissioner and past president of Cobb-Marietta

Coliseum and Exhibit Hall Authority.

Barbara Williams said of the CEPAC Foundation’s board: “This is an outstanding group whose

members are committed to the arts and to the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre, in particular.

Each board member brings to the task a broad professional and civic background.”

Serving staggered one- and two-year terms, foundation board members are appointed by the

Cobb-Marietta Coliseum and Exhibit Hall Authority, which governs the performing arts centre.

The CEPAC Foundation will solicit the investments of corporations, foundations, educational

institutions and individual donors. Fundraising options include sponsorship and naming

opportunities for the prominent spaces and distinctive features of CEPAC.

Establishment of the foundation provides for contributions to be tax deductible as allowed by

law.

Soon to be announced, Williams said, is a major capital campaign to support CEPAC.

“We will build this world-class facility together,” Williams said. “There will be opportunities

large and small, and many opportunities in between.”

Williams hopes CEPAC can borrow a page from the financial and operational success of its

sister facility, the Cobb Galleria Centre, which also operates under the auspices of the Cobb-

Marietta Coliseum and Exhibit Hall Authority.

Defying the predictions of financial experts, Cobb Galleria Centre has enjoyed 10 consecutive

years of profitability—since its opening. Funding for the CEPAC project includes $11 million

from reserve funds resulting from the success of Cobb Galleria Centre.

The Cobb Energy Performing Art Centre is the first major performing arts facility built in metro

Atlanta in four decades. Located at Akers Mill Road and Cobb Galleria Parkway, adjacent to

Interstate 75, in northwest Atlanta, CEPAC will be a premier venue for concerts, Broadway

shows, ballet, family shows, opera, corporate meetings and events. CEPAC will include a 2,750-

seat theater, 10,000-square-foot ballroom, 1,000-space parking deck, full-service food and

beverage capabilities, and rehearsal facilities.

Projected opening of the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre is fall 2007.

“Based on our planning for the quality of this facility, its location, and the management that is

currently in place, it bodes well for the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre to be a great

success,” Williams said. “The excitement and civic spirit generated by this project is wonderful.”

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