MARIMBA MILLIONES, President and CEO of the Hill Community Development Corporation, at an event announcing the state’s $1 million grant for Phase II of the New Granada Theater renovation, July 10, 2026. (Photo courtesy PA Cast)
Right now, there are newborns and toddlers who, as they grow up, will walk into the historic New Granada Theater in the Hill District, maybe catch a live performance, grab a bite to eat, or just simply catch up with friends.
They would have never known that for 50 years, the New Granada was closed. Dilapidated. An eyesore.
But thanks to a lot of hard work, planning, strategy, and of course, funding, the New Granada Theater is just three weeks away from an official ribbon-cutting to celebrate its first tenant setting up shop inside.
The University of Pittsburgh Community Engagement Center, which most recently had been housed inside the nearby Blakey Center, has moved into the New Granada Theater’s third floor, the New Pittsburgh Courier has learned. The official ribbon-cutting, grand opening celebration will be Wednesday, Aug. 12, at 5 p.m. The ceremony will run from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., and a marquee lighting will occur at sunset.
INSIDE THE NEW GRANADA—MARIMBA MILLIONES, LT. GOV. AUSTIN DAVIS, RODERICK CRAIGHEAD JR. (PHOTO COURTESY PA CAST)
The Pitt CEC in the New Granada is part of the completion of Phase I of the New Granada Theater renovation project. On Friday, July 10, 2026, Pa. Lt. Gov. Austin Davis was on hand to announce a $1 million Main Street Matters grant from the Pa. Department of Community and Economic Development to jumpstart Phase II of the project, which will bring a cafe/lounge, a commercial kitchen and a Black Box Theater to the first floor. Thanks to a partnership with Live Nation, the second-floor event space will be built for major productions, meetings, conventions and other gatherings.
“Bringing back the Theater is about more than just restoring a historic building,” Lt. Gov. Davis said. “It’s about restoring a cultural anchor that shaped Pittsburgh and ensuring its legacy continues for generations to come.”
Time flies. And it realistically won’t be long before the entire New Granada Theater will be fully renovated and all of its floors open to the public. Marimba Milliones, President and CEO of the Hill Community Development Corporation, the organization leading the New Granada Theater’s revitalization, was lauded by state Rep. Aerion Abney for not giving up on the project, even when some told her to do so.
“I’m glad that Marimba decided to ignore the ignorance, and decided to stick to it, because we are able to be here to celebrate today,” Rep. Abney said. Representative Abney’s House District includes the Hill District.
“The Hill District never stopped being the Hill District,” voiced Milliones. “It sits between Downtown (Pittsburgh) and Oakland, two of the region’s and state’s top economic engines. Its significance stands on its own merit. We are grateful that the commonwealth sees and is investing in that.”
The New Granada Theater has an unrivaled history. It’s been the home to music legends—Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, Lena Horne, Cab Calloway, and so many more. Prominent African American architect Louis Bellinger created the structure, which opened in 1927 as the Pythian Temple for the fraternal order, the Colored Knights of Pythias.
While there are African Americans in the Pittsburgh region who remember the New Granada Theater before its closure, there is not a single person under age 50 who remembers the New Granada as anything other than a closed memory at the corner of Centre Avenue and Devillers Street.
That’s all about to change.
“The building is fully stabilized, powered, life safety systems are installed,” Milliones said proudly. “Phase I is complete.”
Representative Abney also gave a nod to his collegiate alma mater, the University of Pittsburgh, for honoring its commitment to the Hill District community with its Community Engagement Center as the New Granada’s first tenant. Representative Abney said oftentimes, places like the Hill District hear the companies and corporations talk about investing in majority-Black communities, but then pulling out at the last moment.
Representative Abney said Pitt never wavered.
“This is a great example of what community partnership can look like,” Rep. Abney said.
Milliones, in her comments, thanked the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania for investing more than 20 years ago in the renovation of the New Granada Theater with a Redevelopment Assistance Capital Program grant.
And the $1 million grant announced on July 10 was the icing on the cake.
“Investing in the New Granada Theater and the Hill District business corridor signals that Pennsylvania is invested in the great return of the Hill District,” Milliones said. “The New Granada Theater is approaching 100 years old. It holds a remarkable story, one that should inspire community members, corporate partners and public officials alike to join us in building a future that will be celebrated 100 years from today. This is not a beginning; this is a return.”
