CLINTON — A new chapter is set to begin for the Strand Theatre, the downtown landmark that has stood vacant since 2021.
During the Aug. 20, 2025, Clinton Select Board meeting, Town Administrator Michael Ward announced that a lease agreement has been signed with a new tenant who intends to reopen the venue as an entertainment destination.
“The Strand project — there is a entity that has signed a lease to hopefully open up and take over that property for an entertainment venue,” Ward said during his American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) project update at the Aug. 20 Selectboard meeting. He added that the Strand Committee had met the night before “to try to hopefully get that whole project going so that we can distribute that, our allocation as well too.”
Select Board member Mary Dickhaut, who also serves on the Strand Committee, confirmed plans for the new leaseholder to present at an upcoming public meeting.
“The individuals that have entered into that lease agreement with the owner of the property — we intend to have them into a future meeting in the next couple of weeks,” Dickhaut said. She later added, “I think it’ll be a real added addition to the downtown area.”
A theater with deep roots
The Strand Theatre on High Street in Clinton, Massachusetts, was built in 1924 as a live performance venue for traveling vaudeville acts and a silent movie house. Over the years, it operated primarily as a movie theater, while occasionally hosting plays and comedy shows.
The Worcester Business Journal reported that Rob Nierintz and Bill Grady purchased the theater around 2012 and operated it until 2021, showing newly released films and hosting recurring events, including annual screenings of “Jaws” on Fourth of July weekend, “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” in October, and occasional Super Bowl broadcasts.
According to WCVB, the property was listed for sale as of June 2025.
Additional details on the new leaseholder and reopening plans are expected to be announced at a Select Board meeting in the coming weeks.
