Columbus Theatre not dead yet; owner eyes appeal

The owner of the Columbus Theatre at 270 Broadway, a performance venue used by many community groups in the Providence area, hopes to reopen the 83-year-old structure recently closed due to alleged violations of the state fire code.
A 19-page report prepared by Inspector Timothy J. Lutz Sr., assistant deputy state fire marshal, lists 41 violations ranging from blocked exits, improper storage of flammable materials and the lack of approved fire alarm and sprinkler systems. The Sept. 10 report is on file at the fire-prevention division headquarters located in the city’s public-safety building on Washington Street.
Attorney Jeffrey A. Mega, of Hinckley, Allen & Snyder LLP in Providence, who represents theater owner Jon S. Berberian of Providence, told Providence Business News last week that his client will appeal the shutdown to the State Fire Safety Code Board of Appeal and Review. Mega said his client is appealing “to preserve his rights,” but would not say if he disputed the findings. He said Berberian intends to reopen the theater as soon as possible.
The city closed the theater Aug. 25 after an inspection by fire officials that same day revealed the apparent fire code violations. The inspection was sparked by a complaint from a party that had rented the theater for an event, city officials have said.
Although the theater section of the structure is closed, two businesses on the first floor – a cell phone store and a barber shop – remain open. Offices of the Rhode Island International Film Festival (RIIFF) also remain open for business on the second floor, according to Executive Director George T. Marshall. Marshall has said that “a ton of community groups” use the theater to present films, performances and other events in part because it is a relatively inexpensive venue to rent. The main theater seats 841 people and a second, smaller auditorium holds 149, according to the fire-division report. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the Columbus opened Nov. 1, 1926, and was designed by architect Oreste DiSaia. Among the events regularly held at the theater were the RIIFF horror-film festival as well as the annual August film fest; the Latin American Film Festival; and productions of the Rhode Island Stage Ensemble (RISE), RISE on Broadway. The latest RISE show this month, “You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown,” is being presented at the Assembly Theatre in the Harrisville section of Burrillville.
According to New England Film the Columbus thrived at first, but was forced to close in the 1950s due to the advent of television. In 1962, Jon Berberian’s father bought the theater for himself and his wife, Betty, both singers with the New York Metropolitan Opera, who returned to Providence to stage live performances there. Years of X-rated films kept the business alive but, in recent years, the Columbus has specialized in providing space for community groups.
Following are the major violations cited in the fire-prevention division report:
&#8226 There is no approved fire alarm system for places of assembly. Berberian has claimed it would cost about $100,000 for repairs to the alarm system.
&#8226 A “noncompliant” sprinkler system is located only in the basement and stage areas. “A complete automatic sprinkler system (throughout the building) is required to be installed, tested and maintained,” the fire report said.
&#8226 “Considerable” storage on a stairway interferes with its use as an exit; stairs from the basement assembly room are not wide enough; and handrails are missing in some locations. &#8226 Exit doors in various parts of the building are obstructed by such devices as a bar across the jamb or slide-bolt locks; other means of egress are obstructed with storage, including combustible items.
&#8226 Exit access from the stage, rear basement and front basement goes “through hazardous areas” that include a 250-gallon storage tank of home-heating oil, a furnace, a hot water heater, steep stairs and “flammable and combustible” storage near the heating devices.
&#8226 Some emergency lighting is missing or not working, and there are no records to attest to its maintenance, and some areas do not have exit signs or signs that are “readily visible.”
&#8226 Storage closets under stairs and in “multiple open areas” contain such flammable and combustible materials as solvents, paints, fuels and compressed gases, and lack the required fire-resistant barriers.
&#8226 An unprotected gas stove in a second-floor kitchen is prohibited because the code allows cooking equipment to be used only for warming.
&#8226 The 2,100-square-foot main stage lacks emergency ventilation provisions for removing smoke and combustion gases outside in the event of a fire.
&#8226 The proscenium curtain does not close automatically, as required by the code, and “considerable scenery, cloth, film and similar materials throughout” are not flame-retardant.
&#8226 Electrical equipment violations include multiple open junction boxes, exposed wires, obstructed electrical distribution panels, excessive use of extension cords and use of multiplug adapters. &#8226

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