Heritage Ohio presented the Historic Theater of the Year to Peoples Bank Theatre. The award was accepted by Peoples Bank Theatre, Tuesday, October 11th at Heritage Ohio’s Annual Revitalization and Preservation Awards Ceremony held at the historic Netherland Plaza Hotel in Cincinnati. The Awards Ceremony is held in conjunction with Heritage Ohio’s Statewide Conference.
Built in 1919 as the Hippodrome and renamed the Colony Cinema in 1949, this Marietta landmark closed in 1985. Almost one hundred years after the initial opening; thirty years after closing; and after more than ten years of hard work and $7.5 million in restoration by the non-profit Hippodrome/Colony Historical Theatre Association, Peoples Bank Theatre opened January 8, 2016. The activities that have taken place since then have served as a dramatic exclamation point to the beautiful restoration work by general contractor, Grae-Con Construction. Since its opening the theatre has had a number of sell-out shows and hosted Ohio Governor, John Kasich’s, “State of the State” address.
“We are really excited to receive this award from Heritage Ohio,” says Hunt Brawley, Executive Director of the Hippodrome/Colony Historical Theatre Association and Peoples Bank Theatre. “As the leading advocate for historic preservation in the state of Ohio, Heritage Ohio has always been supportive of this project to restore our historic theatre. They were instrumental in establishing the Ohio State Historic Tax Credit, which was a major funding piece for this theatre. This award is a reflection of a lot of hard work by our board and staff, as well as the support of the people of Marietta and the surrounding community.”
Heritage Ohio is the statewide, not-for-profit preservation organization, dedicated to encouraging and assisting people and organizations to protect, preserve and revitalize Ohio’s heritage. Formed in 1989, is the coordinating agency for the Ohio Main Street Program. In 2002, Heritage Ohio was designated as the statewide partner of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
Heritage Ohio mission is to help people: save the places that matter, building community, and live better. Learn more at www.heritageohio.org.
Learn more about the ways to support the continued preservation of the historic Peoples Bank Theatre at peoplesbanktheatre.com/support/.