ADICA gets report on theater restoration costs

ALBANY — Water was thrown onto the hopes of restoring the historic downtown Albany Theater when Kent McClure offered some sobering numbers in a report to the Albany-Dougherty Inner City Authority during its board meeting Wednesday.

McClure, who is part of a citizens Theater Committee, said complete restoration of the crumbling theater would run in the range of $3.5 million to $5 million. McClure further told the ADICA board a new roof on the structure would cost between $400,000 and $500,000; patching the roof to minimize water damage to the inside of the theater would cost between $150,000 and $200,000, and around $100,000 would be needed to shore up a wall at the western end of the structure.

McClure also said tearing down the damaged theater portion of the facility would cost around a half-million dollars.

“That theater is in a bad state of neglect,” McClure told the board. “Potential lies with the arcade portion of the facility, but our first concern should be to stop the deterioration.

“If we don’t take action soon, we’ll be left with four walls and a bunch of great memories.”

McClure told the board there are talks going on “behind the scenes” to utilize the historic facility, but he noted that details are “not for public consumption.” He did mention discussion of creating loft apartments in the upstairs of the arcade portion of the theater facility and combining those efforts to include other nearby properties.

ADICA board member Charles Ochie said the theater is worth saving.

“We have to do something; that building is, I feel, a community treasure,” Ochie said.

ADICA President and interim Downtown Manager Sharlene Cannon said she’d been contacted by officials with Waffle House and told that the construction supervisor for the chain’s planned Oglethorpe Boulevard restaurant would be in town Monday to mobilize efforts to start work on that long-delayed project. She said she was told demolition of the former bank drive-through on the property is scheduled to start next week.

Cannon also said she expects interviews to start next week with candidates to fill her position permanently. She said some promising candidates had applied for the position.

“I promise you I will leave you in very good hands,” Cannon said.

Also at Wednesday’s meeting, John Howard was introduced as the new assistant to the ADICA director.