The Boulton Center in downtown Bay
Shore has been closed since the start of the pandemic. The YMCA, which owns the
venue, is hoping that the theater still has life.
YMCA of Long Island CEO Anne Brigis
says they were not able to open the theater doors - primarily due to the
financial impact of COVID-19 on YMCA operations.
The Boulton Center did not qualify
for the shuttered venue operators grant like other theaters because it is not
the majority of the YMCA's income.
It will now take $1 million to get it
permanently back open.
Residents of Bay Shore say the
Boulton Center provided great entertainment and was a place where children
could learn to perform on stage.
Brigis is still hopeful that they
will get grants from the town or state, but the future of the venue is still up
in the air.
Anyone who wants to donate to the
cause to get the theater back open can do so
here.