Ambitious plan to rebuild theater will reward community

Sometimes you just have to bite the bullet and do what needs to be done when you know that is what is best for your community.

And that is exactly how the Paramount Theater Committee is starting its work to replan and rebuild the community’s recently damaged landmark.

Memories are fleeting these days. Come home,
or look down the street, and you might only see shadows of places that once were treasured hotspots. You might tell your children or grandchildren stories about “when I was little and my mother used to take me to town.” They stare
back, blankly. They can’t place your references. There are no bricks and mortar to support them anymore.

The next generation will have no problem understanding the feeling of sitting in the audience of the Paramount Theater and watching a ballet, a play or any other arts event. They will be able to experience that magic themselves, thanks to the efforts of a community determined not to lose one of the cornerstones of its downtown, and its history.

The plan for the Paramount Theater is ambitious — bigger and better are the watchwords. And it shouldn’t be any other way.

A lot of work will go into turning blueprints into reality. There will be money to secure and details to decide. Not everyone will agree on the roadmap, and there might be some minor disagreements about how to accomplish the goal.

This project will take a commitment and a lot of hard work by some dedicated volunteers.

But in the end, there will be a new version of a memory that generations of Wayne County residents can share, again.

And that is priceless.

Published in Editorials on April 2, 2005 11:47 PM