Movies have not graced the screen at the Dattola Theatre for 24 years, but Steve Kubrick is determined to end the drought at 25.

Kubrick, a local developer, plans to open the old theater along Fifth Avenue by May 15.

But he does not own the building in the 1000 block of Fifth Avenue and has no plans to acquire it. The Redevelopment Authority of New Kensington, which bought the theater for $90 at a tax sale in the 1990s, will continue to hold ownership to the property, about a block from the new Westmoreland County Community College branch.

"I told the city, 'I don't want the theater. I want 20 years of managing it,' " Kubrick said.

He has an agreement with the authority that will allow him to do that for five years with options for 15 more.

"I told them I need five years to build the business," he said.

Kubrick believes it probably will take two years to finish the renovations, although he is shooting to open the doors to the public next spring.

The May 15 target date has significance, Kubrick said. He pointed to a note written in black marker on one of the theater's two movie projectors. It says that the last time a move was shown with that projection equipment was May 15, 1985.

Once the work is done, Kubrick's company, CSNJ Realty will work at booking entertainment acts ranging from movies to concerts by regional bands and acoustic acts to live theater productions by New Kensington Civic Theatre.

"What we are doing is putting our money in it the first two years and, once it starts going, then we'll get a percentage of what it brings in and the city will start to make money out of it," Kubrick said.

He also wants to make it a facility for the community to use, from workshops and lectures sponsored by the community college or Penn State New Kensington, to having children come in to learn about theater or take music lessons.

"I want anyone interested in using the theater to use it," Kubrick said. "It isn't about the money. It's about bringing the theater and the city back."

Help wanted

Kubrick also hopes to raise money from the public to help renovate the Dattola. That will be done with the help and oversight of the nonprofit New Kensington Community Initiative Alliance, which includes most of city council on its board of directors.

"It is a nonprofit put together by the Redevelopment Authority so we can do things of this nature," said former mayor Frank Link, who is on the Alliance board.

"Our idea has been that the one block there down from the college to where the theater is, we could make a mini-cultural district there," Link said. "That's what we are looking to do with that block if we can.

"We are looking for public-private partnerships in order to make this thing happen."

Kubrick hopes his Aug. 30 block party/concert will get the financial ball rolling. Kubrick said he is paying $6,000 to stage the benefit.

But, there is a deeper purpose beyond the fundraising.

He knows that changing the image of the city as a dangerous, crime-ridden area is key to attracting the kind of investment and interest that he has put forth.

"We're basically doing it just to show people that (downtown is) safe," Kubrick said. "If I can get 100 people to see it's safe down here, the theater will be a success."

The Dattola was a mainstream movie house for most of its existence but in the 1970s, it became a theater for pornographic films and, eventually, it closed.

A Plum man, Bob Black, tried to revive the theater in 1984, showing second-run films with an admission price of $1.75. That revival fell short and the theater closed in 1985 and has been vacant since.

Tom Furey of New Kensington who is helping Kubrick with the Dattola project, showed the Valley News Dispatch where water had damaged the theater. Kubrick said it resulted from clogged roof drains that allowed several feet of water to pool on the roof and weaken it.

Ceilings fell in through different parts of the building and broken plaster littered the floor while the entire building was filled with a heavy, musty smell.

But, Kubrick said he had the structural integrity of the building checked and said it is fine, including the roof which has been repaired.

"One thing we were fortunate with is the areas that were damaged by water are the areas that we were going to have to tear out anyway," Furey said.

A sound engineer who has worked with touring rock bands such as Ozzy Osbourne and Nickleback, Furey is lending his expertise to the project. He said he is looking forward to getting musical groups and artists to perform at the Dattola.

"It will be a great learning platform for a lot of people," Furey said. "It will be a chance for people to gain some knowledge and take it from there. I really would like to work with the community college as well as the high school."

He and Kubrick noted that there are other towns that have been successful with theater renovations such as the Casino Theatre in Vandergrift. They think the time is right for it to happen in New Kensington and are looking for volunteers to help with the effort, starting with cleaning out the rubble.

"Volunteers are going to be key to keeping our costs down," Kubrick said.

"It's going to be for the community but we need the community to help us out both financially and physically," Furey said.

Additional Information:

Raising the Dattola

The first fundraising effort for the Dattola Theatre is a block party and open-air concert with the well-known oldies band Johnny Angel and the Halos on Saturday, Aug. 30.

The event will be held on Barnes Street, which will be blocked off between 10th and 11th streets, with the band performing from 4 to 7 p.m.

There also will be a car cruise from noon to 7 p.m., a wine tasting and food vendors available starting at 1 p.m.

Donation is $10.

For more information and tickets, call 724-339-6616 or 724-337-3525.

To find out more about the Dattola Theatre project, visit dattolatheatre.com .

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