1.5 million steps to go - A detailed look inside the Georgia Theatre (with photos)

     


      Wilmot Greene is pointing around the charred shell of the Georgia Theatre, describing the nuances of his rebuilding plans ("The elevator will be there," "A top to bottom staircase is going to be right here, leading up to the roof") when his cell phone rings.

      "Sorry, gotta take this one," he says, and answers with his usual "What's up buddy?" to the caller.

      The caller is indeed a "buddy," and none other than Zac Brown, the namesake of the seemingly overnight mega-huge country group Zac Brown Band, who's gearing up for a major Georgia Theatre Benefit concert the following night at Atlanta's Fox Theatre.

      Welcome to the new life of those involved with the Georgia Theatre - four months of what has seemed like a never ending string of "I gotta take this" that began in the early morning hours of June 19 when fire tore through the iconic Athens landmark, leaving nothing but an unscathed marquee and four compromised walls. First came the well-wishers, then the benefit concerts (so many, infact, they were turned away until a proper place for the money was extablished), the press, fire inspectors, insurance agents, contractors, funds, trusts, societies - it's been quite the four months.

      It's hard, actually, to believe it's been four months as you stand inside the nearly empty remains of the building, underneath no roof and trying to retrace an recreate paths from scores of shows seen here. But the emptiness is progress, signifying the rebuilding that became official last week when The Athens Historic Preservation Commission granted Greene formal permission to begin resurrection work. The next step for the Theatre crew is securing th proper permits for the actual rebuilding process (which has been set in motion) and then, of course, raising the estimated $1.5 million dollars needed to bring the music back to the building.

     "The building was only insured for the value that it was," says Ivy Le of Jackson Spalding Public Relations, "but the way that it was was up to 1930's code. So if we were to rebuild it just the way it was, we legally couldn't even open the doors."

     But what exactly is so expensive?

     "Just as one example - remember how there were two bathrooms?" asks Lee rhetorically. "Per the new regulations, we've got to build 28 bathrooms in here. If you've ever renovated your own house, you know bathrooms are pretty expensive. When this is all over, they're still going to take on more than 2 million dollars of debt, but that's about all they can bear in order to open the doors."

       For Greene's part, he's more or less back to his old playful self (and it's admirable - courageous, really - how little of that old self he ever lost through this entire ordeal), and he can't help but contain his excitement in sharing small details from the new plans, including those of the new stage (it will go wall to wall) the new dressing rooms (up a flight of stairs in the house right corner of the building) and, one of the largest differences, an increased capacity.

    "The main floor is really similar to what it was (in capacity)," he begins, "but the balcony will be almost twice what it was. Before it was rated by the number of seats up there, now it's rated by square footage."

    He added that the elimination of the restrooms bhind the balcony seats will also allow the level to stretch all the way to the back wall.

    "It's only about three feet further out [towards the stage]," he says, "But it probably goes about 15 feet further back. That's gonna seat a lot more people."

    Four months in, roughly fourteen to go. A few challenges out of the way, but still about 1.5 million to go.

    "1.5 million dollars, in the big picture, isn't that much money," continues Le. "But for an Athens business, it is. But if you figure about 100,000 people see a show here every year, and each of them gives $15? We're there. We'll be partying on the rooftop, New Year's Eve 2011."

 

    

      - Alec Wooden

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     The Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation is the not-for-profit organization accepting tax-deductible donations on behalf of the rebuilding efforts - click here to give online!
      In addition, there various levels of paid sponsorship for those willing to give. Those levels can be viewed here.

      All photos displayed in this story were taken by Alyssa DeHayes. Her entire set can be viewed here.

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