One thing that Cleveland does, that it hasn’t always done, is save old buildings. I know that Playhouse Square was in danger of facing the wrecking ball. I have seen pictures of the grand arch that once stood on Public Square. I have heard of various markets that used to stand all around the city. That is why I was so enthusiastic to read the blog titled:
The Cool History of Cleveland. I had no idea that Cleveland had other ball fields, an aquarium, a huge ice rink at University Circle, or that the City Hall is relatively young. The reading is fascinating.
the Varety Theater
While reading it, I was struck by how another Cleveland Landmark is being saved. The Variety Theater is located at 11815 Lorain Ave. According to Cinema Treasures:
Warner Brothers opened the Variety Theatre in the 1920’s, and became independent by the 1950’s. The theatre, a huge theatre with a balcony, had shown sub run films during the 1970’s, and brought in cult midnight movies in the early 1980’s. The theatre was also used as a “haunted theatre” for a couple of years in the 1980’s, in which there was a haunted tour of the theatre, while horror films were playing on the screen.
Lack of off street parking and the high cost of utilities and other expenses for a single screen theatre forced the Variety to close in 1984. Later on, a private school in the Cleveland area, Freedom Academy, used the theatre as a performing arts school. A boxing academy last occupied the Variety.
Since 2006, the Variety Theatre has been in the process of restoration and renovation by new owners, the Friends of the Historic Variety Theatre, which hopes to reopen the theatre as a venue for both onscreen and live performances.
While attending the most recent Cleveland City Council meeting, I discovered that Cleveland invested a bit of its own money in saving the Variety. Councilwoman Brady was the champion of this project. I am excited about this renovation and glad to see that progress is being made to restore it to its former glory. There are some great pictures that you can see on the Variety Theater website. You can help with the renovaton by buying a bulb or sponsoring a letter on the marquee. My only question is will those bulbs be LEDs? When it comes to restoration, there are still plenty of ways to make a space greener while restoring it to its original glory. High efficiency HVAC, timers on lights, and reflective roofs are just a few. When it comes to theaters and lighting a marquee, my biggest concern is the bulbs being used. LED bulbs are a great substitution. They give the same effect, lower energy usage costs, and last longer. There is nothing worse than seeing a theater restoration project beginning to look rough because a bunch of light bulbs have burned out, and there is no one, or no money to replace them all. While the money is there at the beginning, I hope they will plan on LED bulbs from the very start. I offered to sponsor a few bulbs myself; if they assured me that they would be energy saving bulbs, but as of yet I have heard nothing.
Recently New York City and the Broadway Theater district entered an agreement to change all those lights on Broadway to LEDs and Compact Fluorescents. If the lights of Broadway can burn just as bright with less energy, Cleveland can too. While I applaud the city for helping to save its landmarks, I think that they should be looking at reducing the energy usage of these projects BEFORE they get the rubber stamp. If the Friends of the Variety had to add energy efficient bulbs to their plans in order to get the large sum of money from the city, I am sure it would have happened. Is this a big deal? Yeah! According to the New York Times, one theater on Broadway has over 600 bulbs. By switching them all from 25 watt incandescent to 5 watt LEDs and CFLs they draw only 20 % of their original energy. If Mayor Jackson and the Cleveland City Council want this to be the “greenest city in America” then clearly there will have to be some mandates on the money they give out. The marquee isn’t lit yet…I encourage everyone to visit the Variety website and ask them to please think about saving energy now, before the marquee is relit!
Update: I received an email from the development corp that is doing the renovation. They say that they WANT to use LED or CFL bulbs, but they may get a corporate donation of bulbs to light the marquee. I say, a donation of outdated energy draining technology is not a good donation. I did however, forward the email along to Sylvania corporation in the hopes that they may make a donation of their own! I still encourage everyone to call or email the Westown Develoment Corporation and urge them to insist on energy saving bulbs! ( I didn;t even mention the green roof!)
