The Takoma Theatre with its iconic sign, in an artistic view from 4th and Butternut Streets NW.
Mission & Goals
The mission of the Takoma Theatre Conservancy is to purchase, renovate, and oversee the Takoma Theatre as a professionally managed, community-based cultural arts center. The role of the Conservancy is to ensure that the theater building and its programs are managed in the best interests of the immediate Takoma Park neighborhoods in DC and MD, the wider DC community, and the arts community. The Conservancy is incorporated as a nonprofit organization with 501(c)(3) status and donations are tax deductible.
The Conservancy is not associated with the current owner, Milton McGinty, or the current operation of the Takoma Theatre.
There are two requirements for a successful Takoma Theatre, acquisition and long-term management. While the building is in good structural condition and used occasionally, it needs a new roof, a modern HVAC system, and eventual restoration.
Acquisition and Renovation
There are two requirements for a successful Takoma Theatre, acquisition and long-term management. While the building is in good structural condition and used occasionally, it needs a new roof, a modern HVAC system, and eventual restoration.
The Takoma has been owned by Milton McGinty since 1984. At that time Mr. McGinty did many renovations including replacing the seating and expanding the stage in order to produce plays and host other performing arts events. He has preserved the theater for over 25 years, most often operating at a financial loss. He announced in March of 2007 that he wanted an immediate sale to any qualified buyer. His application to raze the theater was denied by the Historic Preservation Review Board but he has appealed to the Mayor’s Agent. He has said he will go to court if necessary to get permission to demolish the building since the land would then be worth almost three times as much if he could build, for example, an office building. He is currently considering his options.
The Conservancy has received a $45,000 planning grant from the Office of Planning and Economic Development to help pay for feasibility studies, appraisals, and inspections. Membership drives during the summer of 2007 have raised another $10,000. A full renovation will cost at least $4-5 million. The architectural firm of Martinez & Johnson, one of the most active and well respected firms doing theater restoration in the country today has begin studying the options and costs of renovation and has graciously donated the first phase of this work. Edward Demers and Jon Wilson of Demers Real Estate, a highly respected commercial brokerage firm that also manages and develops properties, are working with us on acquisition and development. Attorney Philip Ward is working with us on issues of acquisition courtesy of his law firm, Williams and Connolly, one of the premier firms in the country.
The Theatre & the Neighborhood
The theater is in a historic district and is designed by a well-known architect, John Jacob Zink, who also designed the Uptown in DC, the Flower in Silver Spring, and the Senator in Baltimore. It is one of his early buildings designed in the Greek Revival style that predates the full Deco style of Zink’s later work. Construction was begun in 1923 and completed in 1924, thus the theatre includes features that were common to the early film theaters transitioning from Vaudeville when live acts often preceded film showings. The auditorium is acoustically near perfect and currently has 516 seats.
The original architectural features, auditorium, and façade are intact. Some seating has been removed and the stage expanded to accommodate theater and dance performances. The building has two office spaces, a rehearsal space, and an adjacent vacant lot, now used for parking.
The neighboring residential community is economically stable, and the theater sits at the southwest end of a Main Street development program that extends from the theater almost a mile into Takoma Park, MD. The theater is two short blocks from the Takoma Metro station and many bus routes. The immediate commercial area is undergoing re-development with two new mixed commercial and residential buildings in the last three years and two more under construction.
A Center for the Community
A goal of the Conservancy is to recreate the theatre as a center of activity for the neighborhood. At one time, the theatre was a weekly destination for children and adults because movies were the most popular form of entertainment. While we would like to recreate that sense of destination for the theatre with other performing arts programs, we also want to recreate it as a place where people plan to have their personal events and as a center that supports community celebration—like Takoma’s famous Fourth of July Parade, declared “Best Fourth of July Parade” by the Washingtonian.
Photos of the interior, courtesy of Martinez and Johnson.
