Renovation of Capitol Theatre brings magic of movies
back to West Side of Cleveland
by Frank Barnett

(Plain Press, November 2009) A virtual ribbon cutting might seem an unnecessary modernization of an age-old tradition, but rather than everyone huddled around a real ribbon, an animated ribbon cutting on a movie screen signified the return of the magic world of movies to a nearly 90-year old theater coming back to life.

The Capitol Theatre at West 65th and Detroit reopened Oct. 2 after a $7.5 million renovation. The mid-morning ceremony ended with a showing of the classic movie Casablanca. Entering the theater that morning brought an interesting balance of the old and the modern: a dilapidated old theater beautifully restored to look as good as new; the only state-of-the-art all-digital theater in Cleveland making the 67-year old Casablanca appear crystal clear; a former silent movie/vaudeville house equipped with modern technology which allowed for that evening's first showing of both Toy Story movies in 3-D. But it all worked, without the old and new clashing at all.

Ward 17 councilman Matt Zone, Mayor Frank Jackson and Governor Ted Strickland kicked off the ceremony. Governor Strickland noted the efforts were very successful, "beating back the naysayers that say we can't revive, even in the toughest of economic times."

NEWS ANALYSIS

When the Capitol and the Gordon Square Arcade opened April 8, 1921 one over-enthusiastic observer said it would soon rival Times Square. That, not only proved to be a bit of an exaggeration, but also, by the time the theater closed in the mid-1980s, its better days seemed long gone. The theater was badly in need of repairs, and some wanted it demolished. A big chunk of the top edge of the arcade had broken off in 1979, smashing down and destroying the old marquee. Soon after that the Detroit Shoreway Community Development Organization (DSCDO) bought the building, seeing great potential, despite an overwhelming price tag to fix it.

"Every time I take a risky move," said DSCDO Executive Director Jeff Ramsey, introducing his predecessor Ray Pianka, "I remind my board you did it first." Pianka, now Cleveland Housing Court Judge, was executive director when the purchase was made, so he knows how bad it was and how challenging it is to get by with limited funds. But onward he trudged, inspired by the epitaph on the gravestone of Dr. Frederick Wilhelm Walz, whom one of the neighborhood's libraries was named after, "We are stewards of all we own. Let us give a good accounting."

Thirty years later, those limited funds were replaced by half million dollar grants from both the Cleveland Foundation and the Ohio Cultural Facilities Commission, $360,000 from Cuyahoga County, a $1.5 million loan from the City of Cleveland, and $4 million in federal and state tax credits, including one of the first uses of Ohio's historic tax credit. Lisa McGovern, project manager, thanked National City Bank for their role in maximizing the investments. Also thanked more than once at the ceremony were India Lee and Chris Warren of, respectively, Cleveland Foundation and the city's Regional Development Department, for recognizing the need early on for initial repairs and planning studies.

This marks the halfway point of the Gordon Square Art District's half billion-dollar plans for the area. With the Capitol Theatre up and running and the street/sidewalk rebuilding completed along Detroit Avenue, they now have to raise funds to build a brand new home for Near West Theatre at West 67th. And what's been very gradual work done over the years restoring Cleveland Public Theatre is finally about to accelerate with a major new Ohio capital grant, which will include a new roof and HVAC system like the Capitol got.

Calling the Capitol Theatre the Cedar-Lee Theater of the west side is more than simply because they'll both show independent and foreign films. Jon Foreman’s Cleveland Cinemas, the same company that runs the Cedar-Lee Theatre is now running the Capitol Theatre. Foreman, in fact, has been in on the Capitol's planning since plans to restore the theater began 30 years ago.

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