FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 14, 2009
Contact:
Ohio Cultural Facilities Commission: Jessica Fagan – 614.995.7552; jfagan@culture.ohio.gov
Lorain Civic Center Committee: John R. Handyside – 440-245-2323; john@lorainpalace.com
Ohio Cultural Facilities Commission Approves
$396,398 for Lorain Palace Theatre Projects
Columbus, Ohio – The Ohio Cultural Facilities Commission approved $86,450 at its quarterly meeting today for the Lorain Palace Theatre, and $309,948 for the purchase of the adjacent Eagles Building for conversion into a community arts center.
Opened in 1928, the Lorain Palace Theatre was the first theater in Ohio to offer “talking” movies. The theater’s exterior Gothic-style façade of terra cotta and elaborately cut stone will undergo a restoration project utilizing state capital funds of $86,450. The Lorain Palace Theatre is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Adjacent to the theater sits the historic Eagles Building, built in 1918 and also listed on the National Register of Historic Places. State capital funds of $309,948 will fund the purchase of the building by the Lorain Civic Center Committee, which also owns and manages the Lorain Palace Theatre. Plans call for the Eagles Building to serve as a community arts center connected to the theater by a glass arcade, and to offer black-box theater productions, rehearsal space, and artist studios.
The Commission approval, coupled with the signing of legal agreements, allows the Lorain Civic Center Committee to be reimbursed on a pro rata basis with funds appropriated for the Lorain Palace Theatre in Am. Sub. H.B. 675 of the 124th General Assembly, and for the Eagles Building in Am. Sub. H.B. 562 of the 127th General Assembly. Lorain County General Assembly members who voted in favor of the bills include Senator Sue Morano; Representatives Joseph Koziura and Matt Lundy; former Senator Jeffrey Armbruster; and former Representatives Thomas Heydinger, J. Tom Lendrum, Jeffrey Manning, and G. Daniel Metelsky.
The Ohio Cultural Facilities Commission is a state agency that supports economic development, expands educational opportunities, and enhances the quality of life for Ohioans by improving the state’s cultural facilities. Since 1988, the Commission has disbursed more than $400 million in capital funds appropriated by the Legislature and Governor for facility improvement projects at nonprofit theaters, museums, historical sites and publicly owned professional sports venues. The Commission partners with nonprofit groups and local governments on more than 300 projects in 72 of Ohio’s 88 counties. For more information on the Commission, visit www.culture.ohio.gov.
