Renovation work at the theatre is progressing nicely, Mayor Earl Johnson said Monday.

In January, Andalusia Mayor Earl Johnson announced that the O’Neal family, who had owned the theater building on the square for decades, had donated the building to the city. In turn, the city negotiated a long-term lease with Clarke Theatres in which the city agreed to completely remodel the facility.

The renovations began in early August, with the city acting as contractor and Sasser Construction as a subcontractor. Six weeks into the project, City Planning Director Andy Wiggins said Tuesday that the roof work required for the facility won’t be as extensive as once feared.

“There’s no way of knowing what you’ll find in a 100-year-old building,” Wiggins said.

The theatre project, as well as the companion project for Big Mike’s Steakhouse, were first announced in January. Initial bids were higher than the renovation costs anticipated by RLS Design Group of Birmingham, which designed the projects. The council rejected all bids in hopes of negotiating a better price, but in May agreed to subcontract the project.

The interior has been gutted, and the steel structure of stadium-style seating is being installed in the two downstairs theatres, even as workers are breaking up concrete to install plumbing for the new bathrooms and snack bar areas.