Seats come out of Biloxi’s Saenger Theatre during $5M in repairs. Here’s what’s next.
Crews working to remove the seats at the Saenger Theatre on Tuesday were recalling the movies and shows they saw there, even while preparing the landmark for another encore performance.
The 900-seat theater was built in 1929 and opened in January 1930, at the start of the Great Depression. It closed in 2018, when it became unsafe to host shows. When it reopens, the goal is for it to be a centerpiece of the downtown revitalization spearheaded by The District on Howard mixed-use development.
The seats are coming out on both sides of the theater to make way for scaffolding to restore the water-damaged walls.
The chairs with their flip-up seats will be stored and cleaned, said Mike Leonard, chief administrative officer for Biloxi, which owns the building. The deep red fabric on the seats and backs of the chairs was replaced in one of the recent restorations. Leonard said the remaining chairs in the center row will be covered during restoration and steam cleaned in place before the theater reopens.
How long it will take before that first show opens at the Biloxi Saenger is unknown.
In July 2019, the city put out a request for proposals for a company to lease or manage the theater. The city received four proposals, including one from the group that help was part of the $53 million restoration of the Saenger Theatre in New Orleans.
The city council decided to make the building solid, safe and weatherproof before proceeding with interior restoration and a management company.
Leonard said too much has changed with the project to use the original proposals. The city has talked to people who do historic restoration, he said, and still intends to contract with a company that can maintain and operate the theater and bring shows to Biloxi.
The restoration currently is a $5.3 million project. The city put out $2 million to get repairs started while waiting for a $2 million grant from the BP Restoration Fund, Leonard said.
The city hired Blackline Corp. of Gulfport to do the first phase of renovation. Work is nearing completion to replace what was the crumbling brick fly tower that allows backdrops to be raised during a show.
The roof is new, as is the heating and air conditioning system. The walls that were repaired after Hurricane Katrina in 2005 still leaked, but those, too, are now restored.
Last week, the Biloxi Council voted change order No. 7 that added $226,549 and 56 days to the original contract with Blackline, increasing it to $3.4 million and expanding the scope to remove the chairs and parts of the walls.
“We wanted them to be able to open up the sides to make sure the walls are sealed,” Leonard said.
This story was originally published April 27, 2021 at 2:22 PM.
