The sign on the Liberty Theatre shown here on Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2023. 

LA GRANDE — A La Grande icon may soon make its long awaited second debut. Liberty Theatre, which closed in 1959 after operating for more than four decades, may reopen long before any 2024 blockbusters are released in Hollywood.

“It very well could open before the end of the year,” said Ashley O’Toole, a member of the Liberty Theatre Foundation board.

Restoration of Liberty Theatre started about a decade ago but has been put on hold since September after its foundation received a $585,534 grant from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration.

The funding is enough to cover the cost of the final restoration work needed. However, the Liberty Theatre Foundation’s board has not been able to spend the money yet because of the time needed to sort through unfamiliar technical issues before the funding can be spent.

“This was the first time the Liberty Foundation received federal funding. We have had to jump through hoops before we can use the federal funds,” O’Toole said. “It is a very in-depth process.”

The preparation of bid packages, which are projects contractors apply for, is an example. People working for the Liberty Theatre Foundation’s restoration project have prepared bid packages in the past but this time it has proven to be more complicated.

“The bid packages have to meet federal criteria,” O’Toole said.

The good news is the Liberty Theatre Foundation is close to finishing all of the necessary administrative work.

“We are already most of the way there,” O’Toole said.

After bids are awarded to contractors, final restoration work may go quickly.

“Once the hammers start swinging it will be a couple of months,” O’Toole said, referring to the time needed to finish the restoration work.

The final phase will involve finishing and theater tech work. The finishing work will include installing floor coverings and covering rough walls and uneven surfaces with plaster. The tech projects includes the installation of a sound system and adding lights and a cinema station.

The building housing the Liberty Theatre opened in 1910 as the Arcade Theater. The building was later extensively remodeled and reopened in 1930 as the Liberty Theatre. After its closure, the facade and lobby were torn out to accommodate retail establishments.

The extensive work that has been done over the past decade at the theater includes rebuilding the lobby and restoring utilities such as water and electricity, restoring the floor and balcony seating, building a staircase to the balcony and renovating the stage.

Funds the Liberty Theater Foundation received before 2022 to pay for the restoration work include a $250,000 grant from the M. J. Murdock Charitable Trust, a $225,000 Ford Family Foundation grant, a $150,000 grant from the La Grande Urban Renewal Agency and a $10,000 grant from the Wildhorse Foundation.