Mount Baker Theatre hoping $3.3 million capital campaign ‘Continues the Legacy’
Since 1983, a series of renovations funded by private, state and local public sources helped restore the Mount Baker Theatre in downtown Bellingham into one of the true gems in the Pacific Northwest.
Last week the theatre publicly announced its $3.3. million “Continue the Legacy” capital campaign to help ensure it remains one for years to come.
“This project will preserve the theater building itself,” Mount Baker Theatre Development Director John Purdie told The Bellingham Herald. “That’s why this is so important. We have raised more than $14 million from the community over the past 20 years or so, and used that to restore and renovate it and make it a gorgeous facility.
“Without this comparatively small project, the roof would deteriorate and there could be serious water damage to the facility.”
Purdie said the theatre’s roof is relatively flat, and though it has been repaired in various stages in recent decades, there remain many seams that are difficult to waterproof — something that could cause huge problems in Bellingham’s rainy climate.
The gutters on the building also are the original copper ones from 1927, and Purdie said “they last a long time, but not forever.”
Replacing the roof and repairing exterior walls before water damage destroys the theatre’s historic interior ceilings and dome is one of the chief goals of the project, according to a release on the campaign, along with:
▪ Adding state of the art sound and video.
▪ Enhancing stairway lighting and safety rails.
▪ Repairing 1,500 seats in the theatre.
▪ Ensuring the theatre’s immersive 1927 experience through special interior paint and carpets.
Purdie said plans are for work to be done during the summer of 2020, with construction concluding by the end of September. The theatre is not planning to book events between July 1 and Sept. 30, but those dates could be adjusted, Purdie said.
The theatre’s board approved the “quiet” portion of the campaign in May of 2018, Purdie said, and it wasn’t until the Diana Krall concert on Sept. 15 that the public portion was announced.
During the quiet portion, Purdie said the theatre has already secured two-thirds of the $3.3 million goal. Approximately $1 million came from a historical preservation grant from the Washington State Historical Society.
The rest of the money already secured has come from the theatre’s reserves and from individual and business donors, Purdie said, including a “significant” contribution by People’s Bank.
Now that the campaign has gone public, Purdie said the theatre is “reaching out to the general community, because it is important. Anyone who is interested in getting involved at any level, now is the time.”
Purdie said campaign organizers hope to have raised the remaining 33% of the money before a Capital Campaign Celebration scheduled to be held March 20 at the theatre. According to the release, attendees at the event will “celebrate the arts and the community that keeps Mount Baker Theatre a thriving performing arts center.”
According to the theatre’s 2018-19 Overview and Impact Statement provided to The Herald by Mount Baker Theatre Associate Executive Director Amy Guerra, the theatre has averaged 109,000 attendees and hosted an average of 410 events the past five years. and makes an estimated economic impact on the community $6.6 million.
“The theatre plays a central role in our community,” Purdie said. “It’s at the heart of the arts and culture in downtown. This is why this project is so important.”
This story was originally published November 12, 2019 at 5:00 AM.
