The Greater North Louisiana Community Development Corporation (GNLCDC), based in Jonesboro, Louisiana, is pleased to announce that it has received a competitive grant from the U.S. Department of the Interior’s National Park Service through the African American Civil Rights Grant Program.

The funding will support the first phase of a three- to four-year effort to stabilize and restore Jonesboro’s historic Palace Theater, built in 1924. Initial work will include roof replacement and exterior rehabilitation. Grant funds will also help cover restoration expenses, including architectural and engineering services.

The Palace Theater is the only building in downtown Jonesboro listed on the National Register of Historic Places and was added to the Louisiana Trust for Historic Preservation’s Louisiana’s Most Endangered Places List in 2022.

Once completed, the project will provide lasting public benefit by transforming the Palace Theater into a preserved historic site and interpretive center focused on African American civil rights history in rural North Louisiana. Planned initiatives include educational programming, oral history collection, partnerships with schools and universities, community events, and heritage tourism activities that will make local civil rights history accessible to residents, students, researchers, and visitors.

The restoration will preserve a nationally recognized historic property while creating a permanent educational resource that connects the region’s civil rights history with future generations.

For more information, visit www.greaternorthlacdc.com.