Dec 6, 2018 3 min read

It appears the Coyle Theater is ready for an encore.

Just a couple of years ago, the 128-year-old theater in Charleroi looked like it was nearing its curtain call.

The Mon Valley Alliance, which bought the building three years ago, gave reporters a tour in March 2017 showing the extensive damage to the structure.

Water was pouring through its dilapidated roof, causing heavy damage to the balcony floor and much of the 1,000-seat theater, which has sat unused for nearly two decades. The plaster was sagging and parts of the ceiling had fallen on the floor. Meanwhile, water flooded the basement.

The place was a mess and appeared to be beyond repair.

But now, the Mon Valley Alliance has a plan to save the old theater.

Officials with MVA made a pitch this week to Washington County’s Local Share Account board, which offers various grants using casino revenue, in an effort to get the $7.5 million project off the ground. Christopher Whitlatch, the chief executive officer for the alliance, asked the board for a $288,000 grant that would be used to gut the interior of the theater and create open spaces on the second and third floors of the building.

While that financial request is just a drop in the bucket of the project’s overall cost, it would be a good start for the renovations.

“We want to prep it so that it’s ready to go,” Whitlatch told the board.

The renovations to the theater themselves would cost about $3.5 million, which would include restoring the marquee and salvaging the movie projectors as museum pieces. But another $4 million project running parallel to the renovations would involve bulldozing two neighboring buildings that the alliance owns and constructing a new structure that would share an elevator with the theater.

Sacrificing a building believed to be among the oldest brick structures in town on the corner and the one next door would be a good compromise. The new building in their stead would complement the theater and possibly attract businesses.

The alliance seems to have a great plan and maybe even the resources to pull off a project of this size. It would also be a good investment of slots money for a Mon Valley town that could use an economic boost.

It’s a bold strategy, but one that is sorely needed to get the old barn ready for its second act.