News: A.C.T. Buys Strand Theater
Andrea Jesse
"It is really is a nicely-sized, proportioned theater," said Ellen Richard, A.C.T. executive director, "We weren't looking for a 500-600 seat theater. And it's the location —it's a wonderful location, close to UN Plaza. You can't beat the transportation access."
The total cost of buying and renovating the space is $18 million, according to the Chronicle. It currently has 800 seats and Richard said that the inside would be mostly "gutted." The project is financed by Jeff Ubben, an investment firm owner and ACT board member who also serves on The Bay Citizen board.
A.C.T. is planning to launch a capital campaign later this year and renovation will begin in spring of 2013. It's expected to open in the fall of 2014.
But while A.C.T.'s larger presence near UN Plaza is heralded as a win for the city, a more ambitious $100 million theater complex is still in limbo. The 250,000 square foot space at 950 Market Street got a lot of press when it was first announced in 2010 as a possible development that would contain all of A.C.T.'s offices, studios, two performance stages and even provide housing for visiting actors. Other arts and community non-profits applauded the plan, as the proposed complex would, in one fell swoop, transform one of the most troubled blocks in the area.
The property, like CityPlace, the planned mall in Mid-Market, fell into foreclosure (as this story from fall of 2011 details) and passed through a number of different hands, from a company in Connecticut to a hedge fund in Texas, stalling San Francisco's plans. Richard said that the project isn't dead but is definitely on the backburner.
"That property is still up in the air," she said, "It's just a long lead time project, five to seven years. I kept going back to the Strand —we first looked at it a year and a half ago. It would be a great space, and we decided to go for that."
Richards said, though, that the economics of their current rental situation made the other space still appealing. Currently, A.C.T. pays over $1 million in rent and $300,000-$400,000 in housing.
"We still really would like to find a permanent home for our studio. We have massive studio needs, with our educational program," she said, "If it doesn't happen at 950 Market, it'll happen somewhere else. The longterm picture is to own real estate."
Source: The Bay Citizen (http://s.tt/15VI3)