SANDPOINT - The ongoing effort to restore the Panida Theater to its original grandeur is taking another step forward this summer with the refurbishment of the facility's theater.

The good news is the interior of the theater will be nearly complete - and fire resistant. The bad news is it will require closing the theater for several weeks this summer.

"No more falling plaster," board advisor, grant writer and former board member Phyllis Goodwin said.

The repair of the ceiling was initiated six years ago after chunks of the existing plaster began falling onto the 144 seats below. Originally estimated to cost $250,000, the price of the ceiling repair quickly climbed when the repair triggered modern building code requirements, including the installation of a fire alarm and sprinkler system.

In a classic case of project creep, once the dust settled, the original estimate had risen nearly sixfold - to $1.4 million.

But the surprise project expansion wasn't as simple as just installing a fire suppression system, according to Goodwin. The project scope included a variety of work that had to be done before the system could be installed.

Since 2009, the theater has replaced its original 144 wooden seats, the stage curtain, the marquee and the building's exterior were renovated, asbestos was removed and replaced with modern insulation in the walls and attic, the sewer lateral to the city's sewer main was updated and a 6-inch water main capable of handling the necessary flow to the fire sprinklers was installed.

On July 5, the theater will close and the final step - including removal and replacement of ceiling plaster, the original work the theater set out to complete six years ago - will begin. Contractors will erect scaffolding inside the main theater, the original plaster will be removed, the sprinkler system piping installed in the ceiling and the plaster replaced. But even the replacing the plaster isn't a cut-and-dry proposition.

Because the Panida Theater is on the National Register of Historic Places, and within the Sandpoint Historic District, to replace the plaster first required the commission of a $4,600 historic finish study.

"It has to match historic standards," White said. "It will cost more than normal to restore the ceiling for that reason."

Once removed, the original 88-year-old plaster will be replaced by a professional historic plaster restorer.

The estimated cost to complete both the sprinkler system and the ceiling project is $334,283. Although the ceiling will be finished when the theater opens again in September, the sprinkler system won't be 100 percent complete due to a lack of funds, according to Goodwin.

"We're about $50,000 short right now," she said. "We will complete the sprinkler system as we continue to write grants and collect funds for that purpose."

That shortfall will cost the theater approximately $30,000 more to bring a contractor back later to finish the sprinkler, rather than finishing the system now, while contractors are on site. In addition to the lack of funds to complete the sprinkler system, and the cost to mobilize a contractor in the future to complete it, Walker estimated the theater will lose $32,000 in revenue during the scheduled closure.

"It's a huge expense to close," she said.

Part of the sprinkler/ceiling project funding comes through three grants from the Idaho Historical Trust, which require matching funds for grant award. A $450,000 grant from the Sandpoint Urban Renewal Agency helps the Panida with the overall restoration project, and the need for matching funds for other grants, according to White.

To date the theater has used about half of the SURA grant.

"The economic value to Sandpoint is it's imperative that this cornerstone of downtown be active," White said of the Panida. "So it's in the interests of SURA and Sandpoint to have this be such a vital economic, ongoing anchor right here in the center."

Originally built in 1927, the overall theater restoration project is about half complete, Goodwin estimated. The restoration effort began in the mid-1980s, and the theater has since been slowly undergoing renovations through donations and grants as they become available.

Renovations were delayed in 2013 by the purchase and installation of a new $60,000 digital projection system needed to accommodate changes in movie industry formats.

A leak in the roof of the Little Theater last winter was added to the list of the organization's financial challenges. The cost for that repair ranged from between $37,000 and $59,000, White said at the time.

As for the Panida restoration, there is still plenty of work left to do.

"We could really use another $600,000 to complete the project," Goodwin said of the theater renovation.

White said work done to-date had "definitely increased the longevity of the building." She noted the removal of asbestos that was replaced with insulation helped reduce the theater's heating bill. The ceiling will soon be safer.

"The Panida has done very well with the money it has received," White said. "It's had a very good return on investment because the community has contributed funds and gotten grants, and had a lot of hard work and labor go into it."

The sprinkler system will protect that investment, White said.

Although the main theater will be closed during the sprinkler/ceiling project, the Little Theater will remain open. It will be sponsoring two children's summer musical theater camps and an improv workshop between now and August.

For more information about the summer theater camps, call the Panida at 208-255-7801, or go online to www.panida.org.