ONEONTA _ A self-described entrepreneur recently bought the historic Oneonta Theatre and seeks ideas to restore entertainment to the stage and screens at 47 Chestnut St.
``This building has some great potential,'' owner Thomas Cormier said.
The purchase is a ``fine'' resolution to questions about the theater's fate, said Patrice Macaluso, president of the Friends of the Oneonta Theatre. The group formed last year to preserve the historic site, and launched plans to buy the complex in downtown Oneonta.
Cormier said the transaction was completed June 30. Neither he nor seller Terry Mattison would reveal the purchase price.
The Oneonta Theatre name would be maintained because of its history, Cormier said, and he is looking to replace the ``o'' that is missing on the sign outside the theater.
Upon walking through the front doors into the theater lobby, the air is still and musty. A red velvet curtain is drawn across the box-office window. A concession stand displays candy boxes, and an office nearby has a desk, chair and little else.
But Cormier spoke enthusiastically Thursday about the theater's future during an interview in the office, which is within feet of the doorway to the screening rooms. He wasn't the prospective buyer rumored to be interested in opening an arcade, he said, and no Oneonta Planning Commission reviews were needed because there are no changes in use.
Future under discussion
Cormier met this week with Friends of the Oneonta Theatre, and he and Macaluso said the meeting was positive and filled with good will. Cormier said he would like the theater doors to open for an event by the end of this year, if not in the autumn.
Macaluso said showing films is a matter of scheduling and eliminating a musty smell and bats in the building.
The Oneonta Theatre was built in 1897 and hosted vaudeville acts, movies and other performances. The walls are decorated with curtain murals. The property is listed on the state and national registers of historic places.
For years, the theater screened first-run movies on a regular schedule, was the stage for Orpheus Theatre shows and more recently has presented musicians, holiday movies and film series. Decades ago, graduation ceremonies were held inside the cavern-like venue.
Otsego County Real Property Tax Service records online said the property, previously owned by Terry Mattison, is assessed at $350,000, and was purchased in 2002 for $250,000.
The city supports the concept of rehabilitating the theater, Mayor John Nader said previously. The city was awarded Small Cities grant funding of $75,000 for energy-efficient appliances and other electrical upgrades and $50,000 for theater renovations.
Cormier said he has spoken with Oneonta city administrators and staff about making improvements to the building and theater and tapping into available financial support.
``I'm very excited about a lot of the projects,'' he said.
Businessman seeks opportunity
Cormier, of Burlington Flats, said he started Installation Technologies in February 2006. The business offers installation and consulting for computer, video, audio, television and satellite Internet services. The business has five full-time and two part-time employees, he said, and about 30 contractors.
Cormier, 42, said he attended Hallmark Institute of Photography in Turners Falls, Mass., previously worked as a photography professional and has lived in Florida, Vermont, Massachusetts and upstate New York, including Burlington Flats for the past eight years.
Cormier said he was shopping for commercial property in Oneonta, and saw potential in the Oneonta Theatre complex.
``The theater needs to be utilized,'' Cormier said. ``A building like this needs the public to sustain itself. I would welcome input. ... I'm open to suggestions.''
Macaluso said FOTOT would be interested in managing the theater at least on a short-term basis, but no formal agreement has been reached.
In the meantime, FOTOT is looking into types of films to show, distributors' requirements, insurance and other issues tied to running a theater, she said.
Theater part of Oneonta history
The Oneonta Theatre has 675 seats, plus an enclosed balcony, an orchestra pit, a 60-foot fly space and three floors of dressing rooms. Built by Oneonta resident Willard E. Yager, the theater was host to a range of entertainers, including humorist Will Rogers in 1927. Movie screenings began in 1913, FOTOT officials said.
Harold deGraw bought the Oneonta Theatre in 1966 and ``twinned'' it in 1980 by closing off the balcony to create a 187-seat theater instead of dividing the main floor space. He aimed to preserve stage space, and in 1987 presented a traveling circus that included elephants onstage.
In 1988, deGraw, who became known locally for accurate Academy Award predictions, sold his theater to P&P Enterprises, owned by Philip Colone Jr. and Peter Van Woert. In 2002, Mattison bought the complex. DeGraw continued to sell movie tickets at his Showcase Cinema on Elm Street, which has since closed. DeGraw died in 1999 at age 86.
Mattison, who worked for deGraw at the theater, said selling it was ``bittersweet,'' and he said he hoped Cormier would work with FOTOT.
Cormier said he doesn't have a theater or arts background, and hasn't sat in the Oneonta Theatre to watch a performance or movie.
But he said he knows about buildings, and is willing to upgrade the theater facilities, Macaluso said, and FOTOT can provide expertise in theater production and management.
Macaluso said the meeting at the theater Wednesday went well and included a tour of the performance space. They have discussed improvements needed to prepare the stage for music and dance performances, such as adding lights and accessing the orchestra pit, she said.
``What's heartening is that he seems interested in seeing it used,'' Macaluso said. ``He's a kind of `make it happen' kind of guy. ... We'll see what we can work out.''
Some suggestions made, work to do
Macaluso, chairwoman of the theater department at the State University College at Oneonta, said she has heard interest from the community about showing arts films, and screening the ``Star Wars'' series and films such as ``Slumdog Millionaire,'' last year's best-picture Oscar winner.
The Upper Catskill Community Council of the Arts in Oneonta also is interested in continuing its film series at the theater, Cormier said.
FOTOT, which started meeting in February 2008 and gained nonprofit status last autumn, raised about $10,000 from about 100 contributors toward efforts to buy the building, Macaluso said.
As the purchase developed with another potential buyer, donors were contacted about the group's changing role, and only one contributor wanted money returned, Macaluso said. The money is a good start toward funds needed to cover film rentals, insurance and other costs, she said.
As plans simmer for the Oneonta Theatre, crews continue working on a 624-seat facility at the Foothills Performing Arts Center on Market Street. Cormier said that theater is on a different financial level, which could make it difficult for small-community performers to access.
Principally Prints and Tropical are in the building's storefronts on either side of the theater entrance. Cormier said tenants in the two commercial properties and six apartments are remaining in the complex.
``The building needs a little tender loving care,'' Cormier said.
``I fixed a doorknob and a couple other small items that needed attending to,'' he said. ``There's a lot of work to do.''
Have a suggestion?
Thomas Cormier, the new owner, and Patrice Macaluso, president of the independent Friends of the Oneonta Theatre, said they invite suggestions from the community about uses for the entertainment venue.
Cormier said Thursday he was working to launch a website, which he expects will be ready next week. Suggestions may be made through www.oneontatheatre.com soon, he said, and local contractors interested in bidding on pending projects also may check the website for details.
Macaluso said the FOTOT site is at www.friendsofoneontatheater.org, or she may be reached at 287-0842.
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