Tibbits Opera Foundation & Arts Council, Inc.

The restoration of this 1882 French Second Empire façade of the historic Tibbits Opera House exemplifies the power of preservation. All components of the project followed the Secretary of Interior’s Standards for the treatment of historic properties.

The project features the repair, rather than replacement, of many components of the original historic features including masonry, architectural metalwork, and windows. The necessary replacement elements matched original shapes, profiles, color, and textures substantiated through photographic documentation and physical evidence. Material analysis reports were completed on mortar and paint.

The project includes many sustainable and “green” building features as well. All architectural copper sheet, strip and coil used contain 90% - 95% recycled content, which was obtained from both industrial sources (i.e., wire mills, metal stamping and fabricating plants, etc.) and metal scrap dealers who were required to meet stringent quality control standards as set by the manufacturer, Revere Copper Products, Inc. Additionally, 75% of the recycled copper was sourced within 500 miles of the manufacturing plant. During the fabrication of the architectural copper, 100% of the waste and scrap were recycled, totaling an estimated 1,000 pounds of recycled content.

Awards included: 2013 Governor’s Award for Historic Preservation; 2013 Copper in Architecture Award from the Copper Development Association; 2013 ABC Award of Excellence in Historic Restoration category; Tibbits is in the process of applying for inclusion on the National Registry of Historic Places.