In the past year, Restore Oregon has made great strides towards protecting and preserving the places that make Oregon livable and sustainable. This is an update on two of the places that were on the 2016 list of Oregon’s Most Endangered Places and have now progressed toward the ultimate goal of a long-term viable use. The hard work and collaborative efforts of our local partners with the support of Restore Oregon have ensured the success of both the Rivoli Theater and the Lindberg House.
Pendleton’s Rivoli Theater is the first of these successes. It was originally constructed as a one-story commercial building in c.1900 and reopened as a theater after a major addition and alteration in 1922. For half a century it served as a social and economic center of community life in Pendleton and Eastern Oregon. The theater closed in 1970 and fell into disrepair. It was listed as one of Oregon’s Most Endangered Places in 2012 due to threat of demolition and the structure’s compromised condition.
With Restore Oregon’s support, the Pendleton Development Commission purchased the theater from the owner and donated it to the Rivoli Theater Restoration Coalition in June 2012. The Coalition next conducted a capital campaign to restore the façade of the building and applied for Restore Oregon’s Most Endangered Places seed grant to assist in funding the restoration of the Rivoli Theater’s iconic marquee. This summer the Coalition completed fundraising to cover costs of architectural and engineering plans for restoration of the theater.
They will now undertake a major capital campaign to fund a full renovation of the building with the goal of being fully operational as a regional contemporary center for community based performing arts and culture by 2020. Due in part to Restore Oregon’s guidance and a proven history of collaboration with the Rivoli Theater Restoration Coalition this iconic Eastern Oregon landmark has made concrete progress towards full rehabilitation. We remove it from our list of Most Endangered Places with every confidence in the Rivoli Theater Restoration Coalition and their ongoing success.
Port Orford’s Lindberg House was designed and built over a four-year period from 1892 to 1896 as the family home of its first owner and builder, Peter John Lindberg whose descendants still own and live in the house. Constructed in the Queen Anne style, the house prominently features exterior wall surfaces of unusual and unpainted Port Orford cedar shingles of various shapes. These unique architectural features, along with its significance to the history of Port Orford, allowed it be listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
Restore Oregon named the house to its list of Most Endangered Places in 2015 due to significant structural problems with its foundation and deferred maintenance of the roof and windows. The City of Port Orford applied for and received Restore Oregon’s Most Endangered Places seed grant to fund a condition assessment of the structure which prioritizes a list of improvements.
In June of 2016, Oregon Heritage awarded a $20,000 Preserving Oregon grant which will be matched by the owner of the Lindberg House. Guided by the condition assessment, this $40,000 project will correct structural issues and address other needed repairs. Restore Oregon is pleased to see that its partnership with the owners of the Lindberg House, the City of Port Orford, and Oregon Heritage will result in the site’s removal from our list of Most Endangered Places after just a year. We will continue to participate in efforts to see the house fully rehabilitated.
Despite these important successes there is still much work to be done with our other Most Endangered Places across Oregon. Check our website to see the progress made with these places and after November 11th you can see the new list to be announced at the Restoration Celebration.
