David Francis, The Examiner
2006-12-05 08:00:00.0
Current rank: Not ranked

Alexandria -

Alexandria’s Old Town Theater is in danger of closing for good unless the owner can raise hundreds of thousands of dollars to pay for improvements.

Roger Fons, the owner of the theater since 2003, said he immediately needs $200,000 to cover improvement costs, and in the long term needs $700,000.

The theater has been closed since Nov. 1, when city officials inspected the building after Fons installed a second screen without city approval. The inspection turned up more than 70 fire, mechanical and structural code violations.

“I put a wall in and wasn’t supposed to do it without a permit,” Fons told The Examiner. “It’s my own damn fault. I take full responsibility for what I did.”

The theater, located on the 800 block of King Street, was built in 1914 and attracted many patrons before larger theaters were built. In recent years, attendance at the theater has been declining, prompting Fons to put in a second screen.

“The second screen was very necessary,” he said. “It gave us a lot of flexibility.”

Fons bought the theater for $1.1 million. He said he bought the space to preserve some of Old Town’s historic character. “I didn’t want it to become another CVS,” he said.

After buying the property, Fons tried to find someone to lease it to, but had no takers. Not wanting to abandon the property, he opened the theater as a nonprofit and has struggled to make ends meet.

Fons has not put a timetable on when he will give up on the theater. He knows if the theater is to reopen, the public is going to have to help through donations. The billboard outside the theater is soliciting money now.

“If I don’t get some cooperation from the citizens, I don’t see how I can continue to run the place,” he said. “I’d really like to see it stay a theater, but they’re aren’t many takers for that.”

Jannine Pennell, acting director for code enforcement in Alexandria, said the city wants the theater to open again.

“I don’t think it’s in anybody’s best interest to have the building vacant,” she said. “It is a part of the community. Our big thing is we want it to be safe. We’re certainly willing to do whatever we need to do to help him get back on his feet.”

dfrancis@dcexaminer.com