Securing Historic Broadway Center

Broadway Center for the Performing Arts in Tacoma, Washington began operation in 1983, but its buildings have been a vital part of the town for 90 years. Broadway Center’s Pantages Theater was originally a vaudeville house and the smaller Rialto Theater was a silent movie palace. In 1994, Broadway Center added a third theatre, Theatre on the Square. Situated at an intersection that has been the town’s center for generations, Broadway Center is at the very “heart” of the Tacoma community. Broadway Center for the Performing Arts in Tacoma, Washington began operation in 1983, but its buildings have been a vital part of the town for 90 years. Broadway Center’s Pantages Theater was originally a vaudeville house and the smaller Rialto Theater was a silent movie palace. In 1994, Broadway Center added a third theatre, Theatre on the Square. Situated at an intersection that has been the town’s center for generations, Broadway Center is at the very “heart” of the Tacoma community.

Challenge: Gaining Access Control without Structural Changes

Broadway Center has a staff of 85 full- and part-time employees and a volunteer base of 200 people. They needed to control and manage access to their theaters, rehearsal halls, classrooms, and office building. With many keys in circulation, security to their buildings was compromised whenever a key was lost. They couldn’t afford the time and expense to re-key every time a key was missing. David Fischer, Executive Director of Broadway Center, says, “The Rialto and Pantages Theaters were built in 1918 and are listed on the National Registry of Historic Places. We required a system that could be installed without altering their historic nature.”

Solution: CyberLock

Broadway Center found that CyberLock met all their requirements and began installing the system throughout their buildings. No expensive wiring or damaging concrete core-drilling was needed for installation. They simply replaced the cylinders inside their door locks with CyberLock electronic cylinders. “Theaters are dark and inherently dangerous. There are places to fall into and out of. Knowing that we have only authorized, experienced people in these hazardous areas is an important benefit of the CyberLock system,” says Fischer. They can audit activity at each door and restrict each person’s access to the areas they need to do their job.Fischer adds, “The affordability of CyberLock is an enormous benefit to us.” Most importantly, CyberLock’s electronic key cannot be duplicated and a missing key can quickly be deactivated. “With CyberLock, we gained the access and key control we needed without compromising the historical integrity of our buildings,” confirms Fischer.