FOCUSING on the goal not the obstacles is easier said than done, especially for everyone involved with the renovation of a historic cinema in Harwich.

The Electric Palace Cinema, in King’s Quay Street, has been undergoing a £750,000 restoration project to prevent the building’s ceiling from collapsing.

The second part of the project was to revamp the auditorium with new seating, renovated toilets, a larger stage and a fresh lick of paint.

Organisers started the project back in May 2018 and work was set to be finished in about six months.

However, there have been various set backs in the past two years which have drastically delayed the project’s completion.

Last January work ground to a halt as asbestos was discovered in the roof of the cinema - causing a serious health hazard.

Historic England had to put the cinema on the Heritage at Risk Register and money was obtained to fund the £650,000 asbestos removal.

The cinema’s trustees then launched a fundraising page to secure a further £50,000 to complete the project.

Despite the set backs, trustees were confident the work would finally be completed by the end of last month (June 2020).

Scaffolding was taken down, revealing the redecorated front of the 109-year-old cinema and renovated ceiling, and a reopening date was set for this September.

The last task for contractors was to remove the plastic carpet covering in the auditorium ahead of any final touches.

However, once the plastic was lifted they were devastated to discover the carpet and wood underneath was rotten and soaking wet.

David Looser, chairman of the trustees at the Electric Palace, said: “We were hoping to open in September which would have been a realistic opening date, but we experienced another, much more serious problem at the end of June.

“During the renovation work the carpet was covered in plastic to protect it.

“However, when the plastic was lifted away following the work, it was completely sodden and ringing wet.”

He said the contractor was almost in tears to discover the water damage after years of restoration work.

Mr Looser added: “It was due to a pipe leak in the water main, it’s a very short pipe but there is a lot of water damage.

“It’s been fixed but once the carpet was lifted up the water was also all under the carpet and soaked the timber underneath.

“The wood under the carpet is rotting and now it’s a much bigger job than we thought.”

Because the palace is a listed building, trustees have to get listed building consent before the problem can be solved.

“It is an extra hurdle to go through, but they have been good to us in the past few years with the renovation project and we have a good relationship with them,” Mr Looser added.

“We need to replace the timber under the carpet and the whole carpet, which has been there for many years.

“The dampness is in the auditorium at the front near the stage, as that is the lowest part of the room.

“It is still possible to reopen the cinema in September, but we need everything to be fixed soon.

“None of these additional issues were anticipated.”

In spite of the major challenges trustees have faced with the renovation of one of Britain’s oldest surviving purpose-built cinemas, they are still determined to complete the project as soon as possible.

Everything apart from the damp carpet and rotting wood has successfully been renovated.

This includes strengthening the ceiling, adding a new toilet block, expanding the stage, adding new seats to the auditorium and repainting the front of the building and inside the cinema.

Mr Looser said: “The inside looks really nice and has been painted well and all of the seats have been replaced.

“The front is also finished and painted, and the scaffolding was removed recently.”

The cost of fixing the issue with the carpet is not known at this stage.

Mr Looser said: “We are investigating various financial options and insurance options on how to deal with the matter.”

Once the work is completed the trustees hope to hold an opening ceremony for the public and screen films once again.

Back in 1911, the cinema took just 18 weeks to build at a cost of £1,500 - which is the equivalent of £175,222 today.

The first films shown were The Battle of Trafalgar and The Death of Nelson.

The creator of the palace was Charles Thurston, a travelling showman well known in East Anglia, and the architect was Harold Hooper.