One agreement is signed and a second is set to be finished next week that will allow two historic Vineyard movie theatres to be restored and reopened in time for the start of the summer season, organizers say.

Edgartown hotelier Mark Snider and members of the Hall family were among a small group that visited the Gazette Thursday morning to announce a 20-year lease agreement for the Capawock in Vineyard Haven and the Strand in Oak Bluffs.

“This is a testament to the Vineyard — so many players were involved and it took longer than we wished but now we are here,” said Mr. Snider, who announced the plan about six weeks ago, but did not secure a signed agreement until this week.

The agreement to lease the Capawock has been signed, Mr. Snider said, and he expects the Strand agreement to be signed next week.

“I’ve been in this business for all these years because my father was inducted into the motion picture pioneers of America at the request of Garson Kanin,” said Benjamin (Buzz) Hall Sr., whose family has owned the three Island movie theatres for decades. “It’s wonderful to turn these over to young new blood.” Mr. Snider, the owner of the Winnetu Oceanside Resort in Edgartown, has founded a nonprofit organization to lease the theatres and raise $1 million to refurbish them. The foundation is named the Martha’s Vineyard Theater Foundation. Mr. Snider said yesterday that $700,000 has been raised, mostly in cash, with $300,000 still needed. He said the foundation is committed to opening the Capawock on May 29.

“Hopefully all the skeptics who were waiting to see if we signed the agreement will now come forward,” he said. “We need the money quickly. We have a lot of work to do.”

The plan calls for refurbishing the exterior and interior of the movie houses, including adding digital equipment and sound upgrades.

Also visiting the Gazette Thursday were Brian Hall, son of Ben Hall Sr., Richard Paradise, the founder and executive director of the Martha’s Vineyard Film Society who will manage and operate the new theatres, and David Nathans, executive director of the Martha’s Vineyard Museum. Among other things, plans call for creating short historic film clips to use as previews for feature films in the theatres. The preview project will be done in conjunction with the museum and the Historic Movies of Martha’s Vineyard, a Gazette initiative to find and restore old films of the Island.

Once at the cutting edge of cinematic technology, the three Vineyard theatres fell victim in recent decades to a decline in movie attendance as well as rising screening costs and a national shift from 35mm film projection to digital projection.

The Strand stopped showing movies in fall of 2011, the Island in 2012 and the Capawock in 2013.

In recent years the Hall family has been criticized for the declining state of their theatres. The Island, a third theatre in Oak Bluffs, also figures in Mr. Snider’s future plans, but for now he said the foundation intends only to spruce up the exterior of the building as part of a separate agreement with the Hall family.

Brian Hall praised Mr. Snider for stepping forward with his initiative. “Mark Snider needs to be commended for his incredible patience and outrageous contribution of his personal time,” Mr. Hall said. “I’m just happy that this has happened and that there is going to be life back in those buildings.”

Benjamin Hall Jr., who could not attend the meeting, added his comments by email. “This is a momentous day!” he wrote. “Mark Snider brings his enthusiasm and energy to try to reinvigorate the movie theatres. We join him in doing what we can to help this magnanimous effort . . . Let there be once again lights, camera, action!”

Mr. Paradise, who operates the nonprofit film center at the Tisbury Marketplace, praised the Halls for seeing the deal through.

“The Hall family should be recognized for this — those theatres are still going to be there in the same location, doing the same thing. Not many communities can say that about their movie theatres,” he said.

The agreement commits the Hall family to leasing the theatres for 20 years, but the foundation has the option to sever the lease in each of the first seven years, then at year 12 and 16, Mr. Snider said.

“My only regret is we are going to lose a faithful patron in Mark Snider, because he has been going to the movies in our theatres since he was a little kid,” said the senior Mr. Hall.

Mr. Snider assured him he would still be a fixture at the movies.

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