The former Lake County Nurses Home in Crown Point, IN, will be transformed into a new performing arts center if Indiana Ballet Theater founder Gloria Tuohy has her way.

Tuohy and Theatre CEO Jane Leslie recently brought Ron Harding, president of Atlanta-based American Fundraising Institute Inc., to the nearly 80-year-old red brick building for a walk-through.

It is Tuohy’s dream to transform the neglected building into the Classical Arts Centre. Her board of directors hired Harding, a professional fund-raiser, last month to get the ball rolling.

Harding doesn’t believe the cost to renovate the building would be great, and that the return to the community — $7 to $8 for every $1 patrons spend at the center — would be significant. It will be “several months” before a feasibility study of the project is completed.

Meanwhile, Hammond officials have unveiled plans for an amphitheater in Wolf Lake Memorial Park.

The preliminary designs call for a 5,600-square-foot building clad in Indiana limestone and brick that would include a green room for performers, restroom facilities and a storage area. The designs feature two stages. The larger stage faces southeast with crushed stone seating for several hundred and a large sloped grassy area for large crowds. The smaller stage faces northwest and has limited seating available.

The project is part of a larger, $31 million, project funded by the Regional Development Authority.

Elsewhere around the region, the town of Lowell has begin cleanup on five unfinished parcels in the Meadowbrook subdivision. The parcels will be auctioned July 10, with the proceeds going toward covering the $55,000 cost of the cleanup.

Valparaiso University announced that 44 employees had taken early retirement or accepted voluntary severance packages. An undisclosed number (fewer than 10) were also laid off.

In national news, Bernie Madhoff was sentenced to 150 years and the President of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston predicts U.S. unemployment will peak early next year.