Inspiration struck Ron Carter while he was driving along Main Street in Zelienople, in mid-May taking his 7-year-old son, Lucas, to a flag football game.

He saw The Strand, a now dilapidated movie theater, and envisioned the potential for live theater.

“I knew the building should be restored in a way to accommodate a wealth of professional touring acts … jazz musicians, live theater, blues festivals, comedy acts and vaudeville type acts,” says Carter, explaining he sees the potential for greatness in what others call an eyesore.

“It will be a big draw for the area and will fill a big gap in northern Pittsburgh.”

Carter says he would like to have around 35 professional touring shows a year along with shows by local amateur groups.

The Strand, built in 1914, was used as a grocery store for a few years before being transformed into a movie house.

It is not known exactly when The Strand closed, but the building has been empty since the early 1980’s, says Carter, a Cranberry Township resident and president of The Strand Theater Initiative, a non-profit group attempting to restore the theater to its glory.

The Strand Theater Initiative is made up of several members including Keith McKissock, a Zelienople attorney and secretary of the group; Dale Hartzel, Zelienople CPS and treasurer; Chris Leisie, conference coordinator for a law firm, Cranberry resident and vice-president; and Ron Slanina, an actor in Los Angeles, Calif.

Carter has asked Zelienople Borough Council for a recommendation letter to help in obtaining grant monies.

“A letter will communicate to foundations and endowments the support behind the project,” he says.

Council directed Carter to draft his own letter, which borough officials will vote on at their next session.

The initiative has entered into a sales agreement in which it must provide $150,000 by Thursday, Nov. 1 or the structure will be sold to another group, which would like to tear down The Strand.

“We are really relying on the donations from private citizens and residents, and relying on their generosity means they support the project,” says Carter. “If every resident of Zelienople and Harmony gave $25, that would create the $150,000.

If Carte and his group do indeed get the property, they are looking at the low end of $1 million for final purchasing and restoration costs.

The old theater still contains old film reels, movie tickets, two 1939 carbon projectors, an old candy machine and a concession stand, not to mention the peeling paint on every wall.

“I know it looks bad, but I’m told the structure is fine,” says Carter. Less than 300 seats exist in the theater and Carter would like to increase the number to around 400.

Carter would like the redesigned theater to be operational by this time next year. A building behind The Strand would be torn down to accommodate valet parking of 20 to 30 vehicles. Other theater patrons could use metered parking along the streets.

The initiative has applied for a grant with the state Department of Commerce and Economic Development.

The group is hosting a town hall meeting at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 11, at Passavant Retirement community’s Scholl Hall.

“We want to invite Zelienople and Harmony (residents) to get an understanding of what it will take to save The Strand, it will also be a question and answer session, a presentation and entertainment,” says Carter. “We need support for The Strand and a key issue for us is for anyone who is interested to come out, sit and listen to our presentation.”

“We need the community to bank together and support us because wee need to raise the $150,000 by November.”

To be accompanied on a virtual tour of what the refurbished Strand would look like, visit www.thestrandtheater.org.

To get on the mailing list, e-mail to thestrand@zbzoom.net or write to Ron Carter, c/o The Strand Theater Initiative, P.O. Box