CINCINNATI — The former Regal Theater in the West End has been vacant for decades, but one woman who grew up going to the theater is working to bring new life to it.
“We were a family," Toilyyn O'Neil said.
That's how she describes the environment at the Regal Theater when she was a kid.
“There was like a popcorn machine and a hot dogs, so we would get our popcorn and hot dogs first," she said.
She gave WCPO 9 a tour of the building Friday.
“This is the balcony level. This is where I sat most of the time when I came to the Regal," O'Neil said. "This is where most of the kids were."
In the '90s, the Regal Theater closed its doors. Decades later, it still sits boarded up and vacant.
“The power of this building and the fact that it’s still existing and standing with all of the lack of care and attention towards it, it needs to be here," O'Neil said.
So, she wants to revitalize the building.
“It’s about saving the history of the West End," she said. “Even though it’s falling apart, it’s like a beacon.”
O'Neil said her childhood memories are part of the reason she wants to revitalize the building.
“I want to restore it because it actually means something to the people who lived here before me, and it also means something to the people who live here now," she said.
O'Neil also founded the Robert O'Neil Multicultural Arts Center (ROMAC), named after her father. Right now, it offers art and entrepreneurship programs for kids at the Lincoln Recreation Center.
She wants the Regal Theater to house ROMAC, and she said it would keep the stage for performances, as well as feature a coworking space, offices and history exhibitions.
To make these plans a reality, ROMAC needs to find financing.
Recently, the building was added to the National Register of Historic Places, which could help with getting that needed money. The designation qualifies for certain tax credits, potentially decreasing the amount of money ROMAC needs to raise.
It also guarantees some of the buildings historic features will stick around.
“You want to rehab for the future but you also really want to rehab in a way that reflects the historic past," said Deqah Hussein-Wetzel, the founding director of Urbanist Media.
It's something O'Neil is considering throughout this whole process, but beyond that and the ROMAC programs she wants to hold at the old theater, she has plans for performers too.
She said she wants to bring national artists who are from Cincinnati back here to perform at the former Regal Theater.
O'Neil also has plans for the impact she wants to have.
“What you see is a building that’s blighted and what you hear is that our children are getting killed. And how do we change that?” she said. “It starts with people being able to come to spaces like this and feel safe again.”
O'Neil said they're fundraising right now, hoping to be able to start construction during the summer or fall 2024. You can find more information about ROMAC or donate here.
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