Lakewood Theater may get revitalization study

LAKEWOOD, WA — Closed for over twenty years, the 1937 colonial-style Lakewood Theater may at least be the subject of a feasability study if a provision in the city’s proposed budget passes. Some citizens would like to see it restored as a multi-purpose performing arts and banquet facility.

Included in the city’s 2010 proposed budget is $20,000 for a feasibility study of Lakewood Theatre, which has sat empty for almost two decades. Lakewood proposes using lodging tax revenue, which it can spend only on tourism-related projects.

For the building’s owner and local historians, the study would remove the biggest obstacle to restoring and preserving one of the city’s prominent historical venues. It’s local lore for residents of a city that officially incorporated in 1996.

Read more details in the News Tribune.