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Local efforts launched to save Massac Theatre
posted by
CSWalczak
on
June 9, 2010 at 7:50 am
METROPOLIS, IL — Closed for decades, the Massac Theatre is now the target of restoration efforts by a group of local citizens. Its art deco interior is severely deteriorated due to a damaged roof, and it is estimated that at least $2 million will be needed to restore the theater, originally opened in 1938.
Currently, the fate of the theater hangs in the balance. Save the Massac and the city of Metropolis recently partnered to pay for a restoration feasibility study. According to that report, a full restoration would cost approximately two million dollars. That estimate makes Metropolis Mayor Billy McDaniel pull up short.
“All cities now are facing the same dilemma. Y'know, we’re fighting to keep our costs and things down, just to keep the jobs that we’ve got. I don’t believe we can justify putting money into a situation like that it is.”
McDaniel says the city has already put over 72-thousand dollars into the Massac Theater. He can see the building from his office window, and worries about how long it can remain in limbo.
Read the full story in WKMS.
