Wichita — The Mid-America All-Indian Center is in financial trouble again, and city officials are considering the fate of the riverfront facility.
When the center couldn't meet payroll last week, museum director Chris Dendurent gave up his own paycheck so his four employees could get paid.
That incident has observers wondering if the 28-year-old center, which provides social services and entertainment to American Indians in a wide swath of south-central Kansas, can remain open without financial assistance.
Representatives of the center met Friday with Wichita city officials to discuss the problems, but City Manager George Kolb said the city hadn't decided what it wanted to do.
Earlier this month, the city, which owns the building that houses the center, requested a number of documents, including financial and insurance records, board minutes and a list of current programs. Officials said they were reviewing the records.
"We're trying to work with them ... for the sake of the cultural institution of the city," said John D'Angelo, director of the city's department of arts and cultural services. "We do feel it's an asset to the city. But at the same time we have to look at what's in the best interest of the city."
City police and the FBI also are looking into the center's finances after an unknown amount of money from the center's general fund was discovered missing in September.
Besides the missing money, the center also has not paid its state withholding taxes and has allowed its health insurance coverage to lapse, although employees said they continued to see those fees subtracted from their paychecks. The center also lacks liability insurance and is an estimated $150,000 in debt, according to a community group tracking the center's operation.
The center is a key part of the city's $36 million effort to rejuvenate its riverfront as a potential tourist center.
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