Suffolk Theater restoration earns
N.Y. State Historic Preservation award

The painstaking restoration efforts undertaken by Bob and Dianne Castaldi to return the historic Suffolk Theater to its former glory have been recognized by the State of New York with a 2014 Historic Preservation award.

The theater was one of seven “distinctive historic preservation projects” statewide to receive the the prestigious award, the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation announced Thursday.

The Cutchogue couple purchased Long Island’s last remaining art deco movie palace — which had been dark since 1987 — in February 2005, after Bob Castaldi, a builder by trade, and his wife Dianne saw the theater, “fell in love with the place and knew it had to be saved.” Though their multimillion dollar restoration efforts got jammed up in town politics and eventually litigation, their work got underway again in earnest in 2010.

The Castaldis took great care to replicate every detail of the original decor, from paint colors to the fabric wall-hangings to the style of all furnishings and appointments.

The 800-seat Suffolk, built during the Great Depression with federal financing, originally opened on Dec. 30, 1933. It was a spectacular theater, a place where one could escape the troubles of the times — in air-conditioned comfort and plush velvet seats — with fantastical stories of swashbuckling adventures, monsters, romance, comedy and grand musical productions.

The theater was reopened with great fanfare on March 2, 2013 and, the state historic preservation office said in its announcement, “The local landmark is once again an anchor in the community’s central business district, infusing new life into downtown Riverhead and stimulating further local redevelopment activities.”

“We are gratified that so many years of hard work are being recognized by the state,” the Castaldis said in a statement. “The Suffolk Theater was once a glorious structure — and today is once again an architectural marvel. We are so glad to have been able to help restore this theater, which is so important to the East End history and architecture.”

Established in 1980, the state preservation awards are given by the state agency each year “to honor excellence in the protection and rejuvenation of New York’s historic and cultural resources,” according to a press release announcing the awards, which were presented at a ceremony held at the Academy Lofts in Albany, an abandoned school transformed into an artists’ live-work space, community arts center and business incubator for creative enterprises, which also received one of the 2014 preservation awards.

Other award recipients included:

• Parkview Place, a historic department store renovated into a contemporary commercial and residential complex in Oneonta;
• El Barrio’s Artspace PS 109, the rehabilitation of a former public school 109 in East Harlem, for affordable living and work housing for artists and their families and a community arts space;
• Kings Theatre, a restored 1929 theater renovated for contemporary performing arts use in Brooklyn;
• N.Y. State Barge Canal Historic District, a 450-mile district that extends over 18 counties and 23,000 acres, which was successfully listed on the state and federal registers of historic places; and
• West Point Foundry Preserve, the transformation of an abandoned 1817 foundry into a new park that interprets the property’s industrial history and natural environment, in Cold Spring;

“Historic preservation helps encourage reinvestment and revitalization in the state’s most unique cities, towns and neighborhoods,” State Parks Commissioner Rose Harvey said in the press release.

“This year’s awards demonstrate the outstanding commitments, hard work and strong partnerships that have made preservation an important tool for community renewal, economic development and job growth in New York State. The historic preservation awards recognize the achievements of individuals, organizations and municipalities that make significant contributions to historic preservation and revitalization efforts across the state.”