The Calvin Opera House Theatre

The Doug Strothkamp Family of Washington, Missouri purchased the non-operating theatre with the intent to complete a Three Phase restoration project they had a vision for not only restoring the Calvin to a beautiful theatre to be used in many markets including a rehearsal and arts production program with the theatre students at East Central Community College, but also the vision of using the venue as a means to keep the community alive in Arts & Education. This vision of restoration led to the forming of the Friends of Calvin committee in an effort connect with the citizens, societies and governing entities to form an alliance in creating the Calvin to be what the Washington society would best be served by and to make the use of the theatre accessible to all citizens for maintaining a sense of community within their community.

Phase One completely restored the Opera House with an updated Entrance and Concessions area to open it up for concerts and to play old movies on weekends. Phase Two added a lounge area with a wine & beer bar for their over 21 crowd to enjoy after events or available for reserve to private parties. Upon the completion of each restoration phase, the Calvin gradually became available more and more to the public as a fine arts & education venue as well as a gathering place, concert venue with after hours catering and lounge services. Naturally, charitable organization, schools and private parties were always delighted to have such a beautifully restored historic venue to host their events complete with fundraising experts to assist in planning their special events.

In 2004, the Calvin was setback just before starting the third and final Phase of its' restoration when a severe storm system claimed its' roof and left the interior in worse condition than it had been at the time of its' purchase in 1999. Because this had been a privately funded restoration project with all expense solely out of the pockets of the Strokthkamp Family coupled with the rapidly approaching financial crisis in the United States, the completion of this project had to be shelved. Nearly five years later, the Washington community led by the management of the Strothkamp Family are about to embark on the complete restoration of the theatre in honor of its' 100th birthday and to further promote Arts & Education in the Washington, Missouri community.

It is an environmentally responsible practice. By reusing existing buildings, historic preservation is essentially a recycling program of historic proportions. Existing buildings can often be energy efficient through their use of good ventilation, durable materials, and spatial relationships. An immediate advantage of older buildings is that a building already exists; therefore energy is not necessary to create new building materials and the infrastructure is already in place. Minor modifications can be made to adapt existing buildings to compatible new uses. Systems can be upgraded to meet modern building requirements and codes. This not only makes good economic sense, but preserves our legacy and is an inherently sustainable practice.

Some practical and/or intangible benefits of historic preservation include:

Retention of history and authenticity
Commemorates the past
Aesthetics: texture, craftsmanship, style
Pedestrian/visitor appeal
Human scale
Increased commercial value
Materials and ornaments that are not affordable or readily available
Durable, high quality materials (e.g., old growth wood)
Retention of building materials
Less construction and demolition debris
Less hazardous material debris
Less need for new materials
Existing usable space means quicker occupancy
Rehabilitation often costs less than new construction
Reuse of infrastructure
Energy savings
No energy used for demolition
No energy used for new construction
Reuse of embodied energy in building materials and assemblies