Published: Dec. 19, 2018
Iconic West Bend theater sign to come down next week
Sign to be refurbished, then reinstalled on
the theater in the summer
By Nicholas Dettmann
ndettmann@conleynet.com 262-306-5043
WEST BEND — The vision for the restoration of
the historic downtown West Bend Theatre is about to look different.
The Historic West Bend Theatre Board said
Tuesday the iconic “West Bend” sign, also known as “the blade,” will come down
Dec. 27 as part of the multi-million dollar restoration project.
A backup date is set for Dec. 28, if
necessary.
“This is step one of many steps to bring the
historic icon back to life as our community’s historically modern gathering
place,” said
Nic Novaczyk, HWBT board president, in a news
release. “Ninety years of history brought us to today. This refurbishment will
keep ‘The Bend’ lit through the many decades ahead.”
The sign, which was installed when the initial
theater opened in 1929, has 235 bulbs on each side, accounting for 470 in all.
Poblocki Sign Company has been contracted to
restore the sign and the marquee.
After the sign comes down, Poblocki will
repaint it, rewire and put in new bulbs. Once that is complete, the sign will
be reinstalled sometime next summer.
John Torinus, theater group board member, said
the goal is to reopen the theater by this time next year.
Also announced Tuesday is a planned campaign to
allow residents a chance to make their mark on history. The campaign will give
people the opportunity to purchase individual light bulbs as a way to develop a
sense of community ownership and another way to raise restoration funds, the
release said.
The new bulbs will all be LED for conservation
purposes.
“That sign has been a beacon in downtown for
nine decades,” Novaczyk said. “When we are finished, it will shine as brightly
as it did in 1929.”
There have already been several steps made
toward the theater’s long-awaited reopening after it closed in 2006.
In November, the HWBT campaign received
$250,000 from the National Exchange Bank Foundation and the Barbara and Peter
Stone Family Foundation to go toward the project.
The estimated cost is $3 million. Thus far,
more than $1.7 million has been raised. Torinus said Tuesday a fundraising
update is not available, but “we are doing great.”
On Dec. 5, long-lost artwork was uncovered by
restoration experts in Brooklyn, New York, that will add another authentic
element to the theater when opening day arrives.
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