Sedona will lose one of its top performance venues on Monday, July 1, when Studio Live closes its doors for the last time.

Sedona Performing Arts Alliance founder Suzie Schomaker said that it came down to the venue being too expensive to maintain, because of the numerous financial and legal hoops she had to jump through with the city, including expensive sewer fees.

“It has to do with the city and some ordinances and city code which have to do what they have to do. That’s what’s on the books and they have to follow through, and I don’t have an issue with that,” Schomaker said. “I don’t think the sewer fees are fair. I think the numbers are a little askew. They can’t be fair. You put people out of business [because] they’re so expensive.”

The sewer fees, combined with the inability to get approval on the outdoor part of the venue, have forced Schomaker to change her strategy, and while Studio Live is closing for now, she doesn’t rule out its return in the future as a performance space.

For the full story, see the Wednesday, May 29, edition of the Sedona Red Rock News.