The Godfather Part II movie poster

“Marilyn Monroe Portrait”
by Andy Warhol

The Duo Multicultural Arts Center began as a hotel in 1889 and was later transitioned into a German music union known as Astoria Hall. In the 1930s, the ballroom was converted into a theater (named Fortune Theater), providing ample place for concerts, play productions and more. John Philip Sousa helped organize the first music union in New York and held several meetings in the theater, and several Yiddish theater companies utilized the space for their productions as well. At one point, the theater was even home to a television studio in which several early TV shows were filmed. Andy Warhol, renowned pop art pioneer, set his eyes on Fortune Theater and rented it in the 1970s to showcase his own theatrical productions. Acclaimed director Francis Ford Coppola also rented Fortune Theater to shoot the famous operetta scene from the American epic crime film The Godfather Part II. The Duo Multicultural Arts Center both moved into and began producing in the building in 1987. Also housed inside the five-story building is the Rod Rodgers Dance Company.

Duo Multicultural Arts Center Restoration project before and after

Over the years, the exterior of the building has taken quite a hit to its beautiful aesthetics, hiding the beauty of its façade to any and all passing by. While internal renovations have been a continual project, a $1.5 million dollar restoration project was commissioned in 2011 to return the façade to its former glory – and to revive the history the building holds to passersby. As you can see, the restoration was a marvelous success and the preservation and restoration specialists did a beautiful job. BirdMaster was honored to contribute to the restoration project by bird proofing the exterior of the building to deter pest birds and their droppings in the future. For the Duo Multicultural Arts Center, BirdMaster installed PermaNet Lite, a type of bird netting designed to blend in with a building’s exterior and be virtually invisible to the naked eye, and VolTape, an energized anti-roosting system with ultimate flexibility. All of BirdMaster’s bird proofing systems are humane and cause no harm to pest birds, but rather send them on their way safely.

On April 25, 2012, BirdMaster received the Lucy G. Moses Preservation Award from The New York Landmarks Conservancy for their work on the Duo Multicultural Arts Center. The new bird control system will provide low maintenance pest bird control and protection for the building for years to come.

The Cathedral Basilica has been the site of many of the most important and solemn events in the life of the Church of Philadelphia. In addition, the Cathedral Basilica is a destination for the many visitors who come to Philadelphia from around the country and from around the world. The Cathedral Basilica is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Did You Know?
It is the largest brownstone structure in Philadelphia and the largest Catholic Church in Pennsylvania.

The Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul is modeled after the Lombard Church of Saint Charles (San Carlo al Corso) in Rome and is an excellent example of Roman-Corinthian architecture. The Cathedral Basilica measures more than 250 feet in length, 136 feet in width, and approximately 156 feet in height from the floor to the top of the dome. However, if measured from the floor to the top of the 11-foot gold cross atop the dome, the total height is 314 feet above the pavement. The façade is also graced by four massive stone columns of the Corinthian order, over 60 feet high and 6 feet in diameter.

The great dome is a recognizable landmark and is an iconic symbol of the Catholic Church in Philadelphia. Alongside the aqua oxidized-copper dome, the Palladian façade reflects significant historical value and presence.

Over the years, the Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul has gone through several renovations. And BirdMaster is honored to have been a part of the most recent one.

Architects, preservation and restoration specialists involved in the process did a fantastic job but their efforts would be wasted if the facades were left unprotected from bird infestation. It was left to BirdMaster to maintain the aesthetics by keeping birds and their droppings away from the Cathedral facades. Over time, birds can severely deteriorate the structure and cause permanent damage to the façade stonework.

By installing PermaNet Lite, a humane bird netting, BirdMaster insured that birds and Cathedral were safe.

The non destructive design and installation methods employed were challenging, but with dedicated work and the right product choice, the result was award-winning. BirdMaster PermaNet Lite blends uniformly and becomes invisible from the ground.