Congratulations to Greensboro’s Carolina Theatre for winning a $150,000 grant for their Setting the Stage capital campaign.  The historic theatre downtown will use the grant to help pay for a variety of improvements, including, according to the Triad Business Journal,

…new carpet throughout the theatre; new, expanded, and refurbished restrooms; enlarged concessions area; new dressing room in The Crown and renovated main stage dressing rooms; enhanced lighting, video, and sound including an audio loop for the hearing-challenged; and finally, new theatre seating throughout the auditorium.

And the best thing about this grant?  It’s privately funded through American Express and the National Trust for Historic Preservation.  It turns out there really is an appetite for historic preservation among philanthropists.  Maybe if government would step back, we’d see more private citizens, businesses, and non-profits stepping up to preserve historic places that they value most.