Work on the next two stages to enhance Narooma’s Memorial Hall that houses The Kinema begins this month with the help of Kinema Kate.
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Kinema Kate is a colourful mannequin, located in the cinema foyer, where patrons can drop in their coins or notes to help pay for on ongoing improvements to the historic Memorial Hall.
“We’re renovating the downstairs bathrooms and hallway in art deco style and installing early smoke and fire detection systems to current Australian Standards,” said Narooma School of Arts management committee spokesman Laurelle Pacey.
The Hall is owned by the Narooma community and leased to John and Janette Griffiths. “The Griffiths, the committee and everyone involved are so excited about the bathrooms which will be fabulous and such an improvement,” she said.
“Our interior design team of Stephanie Simko and Jenni Bourke has done a great job, and we greatly appreciate the advice and assistance we’ve received from Eurobodalla Tiling and Swans.
‘”We’re now looking forward to our builder Harvey Shears of H & A Builders making our plans a reality that our community will appreciate for years to come.”
The Kinema will close from Monday, October 10 for the “dirty and noisy” part of the project, and reopen October 15. The downstairs bathrooms will be out of action for a further three weeks.
Ms Pacey said these works are stages three and four of seven stages of the committee’s Memorial Hall improvement project.
“We’ve already done the roof and subfloor, and installed solar panels, with the assistance of grants and donations,” she said. “The rest of the project will cost about $210,000.”
Still to come after the bathrooms and fire systems are building a wrap-around awning at the front, creating more wing space on stage and create dressing rooms to facilitate live theatre, and repairing and repainting the hall’s exterior in art deco colours, and restoring the granite plaques.
“We’ve received $18,000 towards the bathrooms from the Federal Government’s Stronger Communities Programme, and we’re waiting to hear the results of three grant applications by our grant writing team to the NSW Government towards the rest of the work.”
Meanwhile the very creative Colin Berry and Joy Macfarlane have come up with Kinema Kate to help with the fundraising, so please remember to drop in your coins and notes.
Colin and Joy have also developed a short film clip that will be screened at the Kinema before films explaining the project and encouraging people to make donations.
Donations over $2 are tax deductible. Forms are available at the Kinema.