the best visual description is perhaps given by the Republican: "It is impossible to give a description of the decorations which will convey an adequate idea of their beauty. They must be seen in order to be appreciated." Unfortunately for the modern patron, such an opportunity has long since died. The campaign for restoration After years of serving Branch County, toward the end of the Cinema Era the hall was slated for destruction. Tibbits was boarded up and scheduled to be razed by the end of the 1950s. Local supporters rallied support and raised funds to save the theatre. Many theatres were not as fortunate and were torn down in the name of urban renewal, but Tibbits Opera House was saved, thanks to concerned citizens who restored the interior to Victorian style. The Tibbits Opera Foundation and Arts Council was founded in 1963 and now operates the facility year-round as a community center for the arts. With the turn of the century, the Tibbits Opera Foundation mobilized to mount yet another restoration campaign with fundraising and design development beginning in 2002. While the 1960s renovation was intended to save the theatre, the latest renovation effort is intended to return Tibbits to its original grandeur. In the spring of 2006, the addition of a handicap accessible entrance and elevator onto the side of the theatre to make the theatre more accessible to all customers and patrons was completed. In February 2009, another phase of the restoration project was completed with the hoisting of the newly constructed cupola onto the theatre. With the raising of sufficient funds, Phase III, which is the restoration of the 1960s facade to the original French "Second Empire" architectural design, began in 2011 and was completed in 2013. References Theatres in Michigan Buildings and structures in Branch County, Michigan Theatres completed in 1882 Second Empire architecture in Michigan Tourist attractions in Branch County, Michigan National Register of Historic Places in Branch County, Michigan Coldwater, Michigan