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others being the State and the Morris and the Palais Royal, which opened as a dance hall. It is perhaps the one of two original movie house left in the city; the other movie house being the State Theatre. The Colfax and others were demolished during the years of urban renewal. Built in 1900 as commercial office and business space, 309 S. Michigan saw many tenants in its lifetime before the building was renovated in 1926 and opened as the Strand in 1927 at the end of the Roaring 20s. In 1949, the theatre was renovated, a new fagade "graced" the buildings exterior, and the name changed from the Strand to the Avon. It remained open as a theatre until the 1960s when the management at that time was charged for showing obscene movies and the Strand/Avon had declined from its early years as a pearl of the city. 309 S. Michigan now sticks out like a sore thumb in need of attention amidst many new and restored buildings in downtown South Bend. When surveyed in the 1980s, the building's first story fagade was still covered by the metal siding placed to modernize and update its style. Recently, this siding has been removed to reveal the original creamy terra cotta fagade. Some work has been completed on this building but much needs to be done. The removal of the applied facade revealed many large nails used to attach the siding. Some damage (cracking, chipping, rust, and nail holes) occurred to the fagade stones, and some of the mortar joints need repair. New display windows were added, but the surrounding wood framing is exposed and holes allow birds to enter the building. Droppings cover the floor near these windows. Wiring and insulation are visible and loose. The exterior and interior are unsightly and dirty in several areas. - Even with these negative points, the building has seen attention in recent years and retains many lovely features that will enhance the atmosphere of any business that enters this location. A new brick veneer was added to the south side of the building where others had been torn down to make way for the existing parking lot that could be used by any business entering the building. The metal ticket sales booth from the 1940s/1 950s or later still stands in the center doorway. It needs some repair, but is an interesting item for the front of this building. The ramp leading to the theatre still exists, as do the wood doors added in one of the later renovations. The side offices/stores;could be used as additional lobby/concession spaces if the building were returned to its status as a movie house and the building next door could also include retail, restaurant, or office space in conjunction with the theatre. A 1989 -feasibility study carried out by Daniel Pierotti & Company for the South Bend Redevelopment Commission and the City of South Bend included the Strand (known as the Avon in this report) as part of an Entertainment District centering on the Morris Performing Arts Center, the State Theatre, and the Palais Royale Ballroom. This study called for the rehabilitation of the Strand into a film house for foreign and more culturally interesting and important films. Currently, South Bend and the surrounding area still lack such a movie house. With its proximity to South Bend neighborhoods filled with interested parties, this prospect for the Strand should still be viewed as a feasible plan. With the Morris and the Palais Royale well renovated and in use, the weak links in this plan are the Strand, which is currently vacant and in need of repair and the State, which is being used as a bar/nightclub rather than as a live performance theatre and community theatre center. The crisscrossing latticework, arcing parapet roofline wall with whimsical pinnacles and details and the arced spandrels over the windows on the upper portion of the Strand's fagade created the entrance to a place filled with the possibilities of exotic excitement and even travel to distant places for the South Bend community in the 1920s and 30s. With care and a little investment, it again could offer gaiety and culture to this betrotten downtown. The State Theater (Blackstone): 212 S. Michigan Street !sM