Penn Theater remodeling project in full swing
Everyone knows the old saying — happy wife, happy life.
Bryan Frenchak, a former Butler resident who lives in Houston, purchased the Penn Theater in Butler and is in the middle of reopening the theater and returning it to its former glory.
His wife, Marina, fell in love with Butler during a visit of theirs and gave Bryan a nudge when it came to purchasing the building, which was built in the 1930s.
“It’s Marina’s fault,” Frenchak said. “She said you need to check into this place and said she could see this place coming back to life, and at first, I wasn’t sure about that.”
The Penn Theater opened in 1938, and became a well-used theater and events center, which played host to concerts, comedians, musicals and private events.
Frenchak wants to keep with that theme and be able to host all different kinds of events once construction is complete.
“The initial thought was it needs to be dynamic,” Frenchak said. “We have those three tiers. When you first come in, there will be a bar area there. The next area down will be the main area. Then, the last area will be the stage and the VIP area.”
The Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation, lent the Butler Redevelopment Authority $290,000 to buy the building in 2009.
On Nov. 10, the authority voted unanimously to accept a $65,000 offer from Frenchak to buy the building, while also donating $10,000 to the Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation.
Renovations are expected to cost around $1.5 million, Frenchak said, and his date in mind to reopen might be sooner than most people would think.
“We are shooting for September,” Frenchak said. “You have to have a goal. It might be optimistic, but I thought, worst case scenario, by the end of the year.”
Joe Gray, the engineer for the project of Ashlar Architecture & Engineering in Butler, said work has been ongoing constantly, but cleanup was a first priority to make the venue a workable space.
Gray will be in charge of executing Frenchak’s vision in making the venue a dynamic event center.
“With the seats as they were, it makes it difficult to have a multiple-use venue,” Gray said. “What we are going to do is level things out and have three tiers. After the first level, there will be some steps, and after about 20 feet, there will be another level with steps.”
One of the first priorities Frenchak and Gray had to tackle was to fix a leaking roof, which had caused significant damage
“There was a huge hole in the roof and that caused flooding and the wood to break down,” Frenchak said. “Once that got fixed the structural integrity seemed good.”
Another priority was the back alley wall, which began to decay over time. This is where performers would be during shows and guests would also leave this way in order for a new crowd of people to flow in from Main Street for the next show.
“That’s what we focused on,” Gray said. “We are going to make a second floor here to provide storage and stuff like that. That’s the biggest change in design.”
Built to seat 1,100 people, the building featured what was, at the time, state-of-the-art air conditioning that pushed air across cool well water below Main Street.
“It was way ahead of its time from a construction standpoint,” Frenchak said. “They used geothermal for air conditioning. It had been around forever, but they didn’t know how to use it. To have air conditioning in the 1930s was a big deal.”
The Penn Theater was designed by New York architect James E. Casale and construction on the venue was done by Miller & Dumbaugh, which began in September 1937 at a cost of $125,000.
In the 1960s, a small black box theater was added upstairs, known simply as “The Bantam.”
After several decades as Main Street's movie destination, the Penn Theater closed its doors in May 1991, as a result of Butler’s retail economy shifting away from Main Street and toward more suburban areas.
“Everything goes through cycles,” Frenchak said. “It seems like there is a lot of traction right now. The goal was thinking this could be a help in revitalizing the city.”
For more extensive coverage of the Penn Theater’s renovation, pick up the May edition of Butler County Business Matters.
