Georgetown Palace Theatre suffers six figures' worth of flooding damage from winter storm

Georgetown's Palace Theater closed due to damage

While the rest of Central Texas may have bounced back from last weekend's winter storm, a historic theatre in Georgetown is still trying to recover. The Palace Theatre says it suffered six figures worth of damage after one of its water pumps failed. FOX 7 Austin's Marco Bitonel has more.

GEORGETOWN, Texas - While the rest of Central Texas may have bounced back from the winter storm, a historic community theatre is trying to recover. 

The Georgetown Palace Theatre says during the arctic blast last week, a pump in the back portion of the theatre broke down, leading to severe damage to parts of the building. 

What they're saying:

"You name it, it’s on the list of things to repair," said Debra Heater, the Development Director of the Palace Theatre. 

Heater says the theatre's pump gave out on Sunday during the storm and, due to the icy conditions, the theatre was closed, meaning the flooding went unnoticed for days. 

"We came in last Tuesday to about knee-high water. We basically had standing water in the theatre for a couple of days."

The water stretched from the stage all the to the third row of seats. When FOX 7 visited the stage on Monday, the area was covered with a dehumidifying wrap, which is set to stay there until Friday to soak up all the moisture.  

When it comes to how extensive the flood damage is, Heater says an exact dollar amount is still unknown. 

"It’s in the six figures. We're still waiting on the insurance estimate for a more detailed and accurate report on the damages."

But already the losses are starting to pile up. Hester told FOX 7 that they've lost three rows of seating, which is about 60 seats. They've also lost sound equipment stored under the stage, as well as AV equipment and fabrics and materials used for production. All the carpet next to the stage also had to be stripped out and removed. 

In addition to physical damage, the flooding is having some major impacts on the theatre's productions. 

The last weekend of Disney's Frozen had to be canceled. The theatre's next show, SWING!, also had to be re-assessed. The Palace Theatre was able to secure an opening weekend spot at Georgetown High School the weekend of Feb. 13-15.

Local perspective:

The Georgetown Palace Theatre has a history dating back to 1925, when the building was first built. It celebrated its official grand opening in February 1926. 

For the people of Georgetown, it's a staple of the city's history. 

"Georgetown is very, very proud of the Palace Theatre. It's beautiful inside and so I just hope they’re going to be able to pull it off ," said Louise of Georgetown. 

"We don’t have to go anywhere, it’s convenient and it brings people to our town so it's important to us," said Kamil, who also calls Georgetown home. 

What's next:

As the Palace Theatre plans to celebrate its 100th anniversary on Feb. 13, Heater says they're sticking around, regardless of how long repairs might take. 

"This place isn't going anywhere. We're going to be around for another one hundred years."

An exact timeline for repairs is unknown until a full damage assessment is completed. The Georgetown Palace Theatre says the best way to support them through this time is by buying tickets to future shows or donating directly, both of which can be done by visiting their website.