The 1,200-seat Patterson Theater is one of Balitmore’s last remaining historic movie houses. Opened in 1930, the John Zink-designed theater was nearly destroyed by fire in 1958, but was saved and continued to show movies for several decades before it closed.

In 1998, the Department of Housing and Urban Development awarded Creative Alliance, a non-profit performing arts group, with a $7.5-million grant to transform the old movie house into the Patterson Center for the Arts.

The renovation/restoration was completed in 2003, and the Patterson Performing Arts Center is now open.

The building now houses the auditorium, a 2,000-square-foot gallery, studios, classrooms, meeting halls, and a cafe.