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After the Roseway Theater was devastated by an electrical fire last August, owner Greg Wood expressed optimism about rebuilding the beloved neighborhood movie house.
But that prospect is looking far less likely than it did in the summer. As of now, what remains of the theater is in the process of being demolished.
“It’s devastating, man,” Wood tells WW. “At first, I really thought we were going to be about to rebuild it.”
Wood estimates that demolition will take five weeks to two months. Given the impossibility of recapturing the old-fashioned beauty of the theater’s 100-year-old wood and plaster ceiling, he says he’s all but resigned to letting the dream of resurrecting the Roseway go.
Wood believes elements of the theater will live on, however. Amazingly, the blaze that filled the building’s 7-foot attic spared its treasured stained glass, which Wood hopes to donate to other theaters, including the Hollywood Theatre. Also, he is considering donating the Roseway marquee to the National Neon Sign Museum in The Dalles.
While Wood takes a “never say never” attitude to the ultimate fate of the Roseway, he admits the future looks grim. “It took me two months to go through every emotion possible,” he says. “There’s some sort of acceptance that came in.”