GROSSE POINTE FARMS, Mich. – The Grosse Pointe War Memorial’s Patriot Theater never officially reopened since the pandemic started in March of 2020.
Two weeks ago, it was destroyed by a flood, causing millions of dollars in damages. Like many places across the Metro Detroit area, severe flooding from the storms damaged the entire structure.
“Quite a devastating loss. Our Patriot Theater during the storm on June 25 took on water from our construction site where it all went down to our theater space and filled it like a small pool,” said Leah Celebi, vice president of curation, community and communications. “Everything from the seats to the stage, it didn’t take long for water to do its damage from mold.”
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“It filled our orchestra pit, so I would say easily 5 feet into the pit, but it also rose up into the seats and up onto the stage.”
The theater had been under construction while being closed due to the pandemic, and it will not reopen as planned.
“It really does hit you to the core because that space for us was a space for the community really. It was a space where we welcomed families for movies. It was a space where we held first rate performances,” Celebi said.
The damages are believed to be between $2 million and $3 million. The War Memorial does have insurance but what insurance will cover is still being assessed.
In the meantime, the staff is looking forward to the future, taking things step by step until they can rebuild and open the space again to the public.
To learn more on how you can support the theater and The War Memorial, visit www.warmemorial.org/support.
Watch the full report in the video above.