Fires, vandalism put Palace Theatre at risk, theatre officials say

Leaders and volunteers at an east London theatre are on edge following a start to the winter that's included a number of fires being lit in their entryway, a burglary, and damage to the front of the historic building.

The Palace Theatre, located at 710 Dundas St. in Old East Village (OEV), has been dealing with a rash of overnight fires lit in the entrances by people attempting to stay warm. 

The chair of the theatre's board, Debra Chantler, believes it's not a matter of whether a bigger fire that causes damage or injury will happen — it's a matter of when.

"The front of the facade of the theatre is wooden. If it catches on fire, we're in big trouble. There's been a few fires already, so it's just a matter of time before somebody gets really hurt," said Chantler.

Chantler said what's happening at the Palace is a microcosm of an issue businesses across the neighbourhood face. Earlier in December, a fire that engulfed the doorway of the church office for Open Door Christian Fellowship at 920 Dundas St. caused $200,000 in damage.

Evidence of similar fires that have yet to burn out of control has been common at the theatre, Chantler said. Volunteers and employees often arrive in the morning to see discarded and charred pieces of wood and fabric, piles of soot and even damage to the carpentry at the front of the church.

"The problem is, the homeless have nowhere to go. They're cold. They're citizens of this city as well," Chantler said. "For whatever reason they're still out on the street and they're trying to find a place to be warm and to be sheltered. Because our doorways are alcoves, that's their shelter, and it's wrong."

Chantler said she wants those who are forced to sleep outside in the cold to be as warm as possible. However, at the same time, she has concern over the safety implications that come from the fires — not only for the people who could be hurt, but also for the historic building that has a heritage designation.

Melissa Parker, the executive director of the Palace Theatre, agrees that it's a difficult position to be put in.

"I really do feel for the [unhoused] people, but at the same time we need to keep this building alive. It's a beautiful building and it offers so much to the city," Parker said.

The fires have caused more than just exterior damage, Parker said.

That's something that concerns David Long, who has volunteered at the theatre for 47 years. 

"Someone was burning furniture in front of our office door, and managed to fill the theatre with smoke prior to Sunday's performance, so we had to do a frantic clean so that the show could go on," Long said.

In his eyes, the place he loves dearly feels like "ground zero" for the issues OEV is facing. Other issues, like a break-in that resulted in an expensive keyboard being stolen and fires being lit in the secure lot behind the theatre are increasing the strain on volunteers and management alike.

"We had a major fire at one of the back doors earlier in the week ... right beside an air intake, which proceeded to fill the Procunier Hall with black soot. Volunteers [had] to take down 40 theatre lights and clean them in the next two weeks," Long said.

"It's exhausting."

Solutions either costly, or far-off

As far as solutions go, plywood over the doors is a temporary fix, Parker said.

She also said there's been contact with police and fire officials to work on safety concerns.

London Fire Platoon Chief Colin Shewell told CBC News the fire department is broadly working with city outreach staff to help them in reaching people lighting the fires and working to prevent them.

Another option is overnight security — something that could cause the non-profit theatre's security expenses to rise significantly.

A more permanent, but still costly, solution that's being eyed is the installation of metal gates over the theatre's doorways. That might require fundraising, but is the most likely route, Parker said.

But to both Parker and Chantler, the only permanent solution to the issue is to get people off the streets. It's a solution that provincial and federal governments need to play a part in achieving, they both said.

"There's not enough services for people, both before they become unhoused, and after," said Parker. "There's too many people for [the city's shelters]."

Parker also noted that services being concentrated in OEV is putting a disproportionate amount of strain on that neighbourhood.

"Other businesses are suffering as well. Nobody's winning here," she said.

While management at the theatre searches for answers and works toward putting more safety measures in place, Parker wants patrons to understand work is being done to negate the issues.

"We're still here, and doing everything we can to make sure that it's safe for everybody involved," she said.