“It was certainly a generous thing on the part of Honda to provide that money to help support community, and we’re very grateful,” said Steve Hess, a GrandWorks board member and Urbana County Commissioner.
Bobbie Trittschuh, executive director for the Honda of America Foundation, said in a news release that the renovation project fits Honda of America’s goals.
“The GrandWorks Foundation’s vision to restore and revitalize the Gloria Theatre fits well with Honda’s philanthropic initiatives to provide long-term, sustainable benefits that improve quality of life in the communities where our associates live,” she said.
The Gloria Theatre, located at 216 S. Main St., was originally the site of the Clifford Theatre, built in 1905 by Billy Clifford, a popular Vaudeville star. A fire destroyed a lot of the building in 1918, but it was repaired in 1930 and bought in 1940 by Walter Grimes, who named the theater Gloria, after his daughter. Chakeres Theatres bought the building in the 1970s and operated it as Urbana Twin Cinemas until its closing in 2013.
Urbana United Methodist Church purchased the theatre in 2014 in order to renovate it as an outreach project. But Hess said the church decided to give it back to the community by creating a group of public and private sector individuals to oversee the project as the non-profit GrandWorks Foundation.
The renovation project is important to the people in the Urbana and Champaign County community, Hess said. When choosing a community in which to raise a family, people look at many factors such as job opportunities, school, crime rates/safety and leisure activities, he added.
“There’s a lot of factors that go into it and one of them is, ‘What is there to do? What does this community have to offer for when we’re not at work, for when we’re looking for something to do?’ ” he said.
In addition to the lighting and curtains, renovations also include taking out the wall that divided the theatre into two cinemas, taking out a wall on the second floor to restore the ballroom and renovating the concession stand.
Athletes from the Urbana High School football team and Urbana University students have helped with the renovations. Also, various businesses have sponsored plays, and private donations have helped.
In addition to movies, the renovated theatre will have stage performances, concerts and youth activities, Hess said. The theatre can also host wedding receptions, banquets and business meetings.
The different types of revenue streams will help the theatre be successful, Hess said.
“I think we can really do something here that hasn’t been done before,” he said. “I think there are some new ideas that we think will work, that we hope will work, that we’re pretty confident will work, and if they do, it’ll be a new paradigm for old movie theaters, and I think that’s kind of exciting.”
According to Lydia Hess, administrative manager for GrandWorks, the next event at the Gloria Theater is “Faith Encounter 2015: Experience the Living Christ,” to be held from 6:30-8 p.m. Sept. 27-30.
About the Author