Owner of historic Pickwick Theatre plans $1.5 million renovation

posted by CSWalczak on April 26, 2011 at 7:45 am

PARK RIDGE, IL — Once some changes are made to the local preservation ordinance and the theater’s historical status is recognized by the Illinois Historical Preservation Agency, Dino Vlahakis, owner of the eighty-two-year-old art deco Pickwick Theatre, hopes to embark on an extensive renovation plan that will include installation of digital projection and restoration of of the theater’s original fire curtain.

The renovations will cost roughly $1.5 million, Vlahakis said. The larger seats will result in the loss of seating in the Pickwick’s main theater and in the smaller rear theaters, but Vlahakis said many moviegoers have complained about the quality of the current seats. The seats in the main theater were installed in the 1960s, he said.

The digital projection will make films appear sharper on screen and will eliminate problems like lines and wear marks that are common with 35 mm film, Vlahakis said.

There is more in the Herald-Advocate.

Theaters in this post

• Pickwick Theatre