Cape May Planning Board Deems Beach Theatre a Key Historic Building

CAPE MAY — The city’s Planning Board voted unanimously Oct. 13 to pass a resolution designating the Beach Theatre as a key, contributing historic building.
The resolution has no effect on a demolition approval issued last summer by the city’s Historic Preservation Commission. The theater’s owners, Frank Investments, have stated it plans to demolish the theater section of the building before the end of the year.
The approval of the Planning Board would be part of a three-tiered process to have the Beach Theatre deemed a key, contributing structure by City Council.
The city’s HPC passed a resolution on April 27 with that same designation.
The Planning Board’s resolution now moves to City Council for a vote. Even if council passes an ordinance to declare the theater historically significant to the city, it would have no effect on the planned demolition. Frank Investments has approval for demolition until Jan. 1 2011, according to Planning Board Chairman Bill Bezaire.
Robert Fineberg, solicitor for HPC, said resident Barbara Skinner, who saved Ponderlodge in Lower Township, recommended the theater for key historic designation to the HPC. He said properties are rated in the city for historical significance by a survey undertaken on behalf of HPC, which was last updated in 1992.
Fineberg said HPC is in the process of surveying all the properties in the city. The Beach Theatre does not appear on the 1992 survey as an historic property.
Fineberg said there were eight criteria to determine if a building was historic using guidelines from the National Register of Historic Places. The criteria include: character, interest or value as part of the development, heritage or cultural characteristics of a city, association with events that were significant to history of city, association with persons significant in city’s past or embodiment of a period or type of construction, architecture or engineering. Also: identification with a builder, designer, architect or artist as part of heritage of city or a structurally innovative, location or characteristic that make it a familiar visual feature or likely to yield historical information.
The meeting began with a PowerPoint presentation by resident Jean Powick who built a case for the historical significance of the Beach Theatre.
Powick said the theater was within the city’s National Landmark District and National Register District. She noted the theater was over 50 years old which is considered historic and had retained features of its original construction including wood balustrades, shop windows, leaded glass windows, original box office, wood paneling in lobby, raised moldings and murals.
Powick said only one of four National Register criteria needed to be met to be a significant historical building.
She said the Beach Theatre was designed by theater architect William Lee and built by William C. Hunt who built theaters and piers at the shore. Hunt was elected to both the state Senate and House.
Lee designed 80 theaters of which 66 have been closed and demolished with only three remaining in operation in New Jersey, said Powick.
Preservation New Jersey said the theater is first and only remaining example of a storefront theater at the Jersey Shore. Powick said Jean Kolva, who is preparing a new survey of historic properties for HPC, said the building is a key historic building.
According to Cape May Construction Official Bill Callahan, Frank Investments has not applied for a demolition permit, which involves documenting, that water, electric and gas service has been turned off in the building.