When Paul Doyle first saw the exterior of a vacant Mason’s Lodge in Columbia City in November 2002, he couldn’t get it out of his mind. Even so, it took months before he ever stepped through the doors. Inside, he encountered a space free of carpet and paint, but full of musty odors and standing water. “It was like opening King Tut’s tomb,” remembers Doyle. It was also, he realized, a perfect place for a movie theater.
And so the dream of the Columbia City Cinema began to stir.
Of course, like any taut thriller, the road from first sighting to first showing was chock full of twists and turns, most concerning money. When Doyle found himself close to losing the property, local developers found financial backers that helped him raise the curtain in May 2004.
Since then, Doyle says community support of the theater — one of two independents in Seattle — has been wonderful. In return, he’s started “Cinema Friends,” a nonprofit where cineastes can purchase “movie mogul” memberships, ensuring the cinema doesn’t go dark.
Says Doyle of the 204-seat single screen theater: “People love this place.”
—Rosette Royale
For copy of actual issue, go to https://www.realchangenews.org/2007/03/28/mar-28-2007-entire-issue