Tacoma’s Theaters Put on Notice
Mayor Campbell issues a firm mandate requiring local theaters to meet new fire safety standards or face closure.
That the Tacoma theaters must conform to the law is the mandate sent out by Mayor Campbell. After a careful consideration of the report made to him by Fire Chief Poyns and Building Inspector Tuell, he has decided to take decisive action and compel the recommendations of the report to be complied with. The mayor says he has notified the theaters to make some changes and he believes that they will make a bona fide effort to do so at once. When asked what would be done with the Lyceum, as it is a frame structure and cannot be made to comply with the provisions of the ordinance, he said that was a matter on which the council would have to take action. The Tacoma theater management is considering some changes, but nothing definite has been done. The Empire theater has been furnished three new chemical tanks and a hose for fire protection.
“When asked what would be done with the Lyceum, as it is a frame structure, and cannot be made to comply with the provisions of the ordinance, he said that was a matter on which the council would have to take action.”
Fire safety in aging, historic, or 'frame' structures remains a constant struggle in Tacoma's urban planning. Just as the Lyceum faced an existential threat due to its construction materials in 1904, current debates over seismic retrofitting and building codes for historic districts highlight the ongoing friction between heritage and safety.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.