Beck Center front winter 2014.jpg

Beck Center for the Arts will receive more than $400,000 in state funds to help pay for renovations.

(file photo)

The Gordon Square Arts District will use part of the $1 million in state funding it is receiving to help pay for construction of the New West Theatre under construction on West 67th Street.

LAKEWOOD, Ohio -- The Beck Center for the Arts in Lakewood and the Gordon Square Arts District on the west side of Cleveland will receive a total of $1.4 million in additional state funding for capital improvements.

The money was contained in House Bill 497, which was signed into law Tuesday by Gov. John Kasich. It provides funding for infrastructure improvements for state agencies, colleges and schools, and nonprofit organizations like museums and community theaters.

"House District 13 will benefit from the awards to these arts organizations, which serve as economic catalysts for the region," said state Rep. Nickie Antonio, D-Lakewood. The House approved the bill March 26.

Beck Center for the Arts, 17801 Detroit Ave., will receive more than $402,000 in state funds to improve handicap accessibility and upgrade the heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems in the historic building.

"We're very excited to be on the list," said Cindy Einhouse, president and CEO of the Beck Center. "We're excited to have an opportunity to update our facility and better serve our constituents."

The money will be spent on improvements to the educational area in the oldest part of the building.

"We have needs for renovations to that part of the building that was built in 1915, which would improve (Americans with Disabilities Act) accessibility and also energy efficiency."

The Beck Center is a non-profit, performing arts and arts education organization.

The state will provide $1 million to the Gordon Square Arts District, an area on the west side of Cleveland that runs along Detroit Avenue from West 54th to West 78th streets. The area includes the Capitol Theatre, the Cleveland Public Theatre, and the Near West Theatre, which is under construction.

The district is wrapping up a $30 million capital campaign that includes streetscape improvements, parking development, and theater improvements. The new state funding will go toward building the Near West Theatre on West 67th Street. The building, when completed later this year, will be home to a community theater company that has been renting performance space from St. Patrick Catholic Church on Bridge Street.

Part of the money also will go toward improving handicap accessibility and code compliance at Cleveland Public Theatre, 6415 Detroit Ave.

The state money is "tremendously important" to completing the redevelopment of the Gordon Square neighborhood, which has served as a catalyst for economic development, said Judi Feniger, executive director of the Gordon Square Arts District.

"It's been totally transformational to the neighborhood," Feniger said of her organization's economic development efforts. "About 75 new businesses have come in over the last six to seven years, and residential construction has been spurred."

Vacant buildings have been rehabilitated and occupied.

In addition, the area is cleaner, safer, and more inviting to visitors, she said.