Developer pulls out of Berkeley’s California Theatre redevelopment

BERKELEY — Plans to redevelop the historic California Theatre in Berkeley into a brand new performing arts house and 18 tales of housing are actually in peril after the developer pulled out of the plans, organizations main the mission introduced.

The California Theater Consortium, a coalition of teams led by the nonprofit Korsa Musical Theater, introduced that Gilbane Improvement Firm, its improvement companion, has backed out of a mission which sought to demolish practically the entire California Theatre aside from its facade to make means for a brand new 24,273-square-foot stay efficiency house and 211 houses.

Representatives with Gilbane Improvement didn’t instantly reply to requests for remark.

A accomplished utility to redevelop the California Theatre was first submitted in 2022. The theater had closed a yr earlier through the COVID-19 pandemic after greater than 100 years in operation.

Along with constructing housing, together with 22 items listed at reasonably priced charges, the aim of the brand new proposal was to develop an area that would accommodate each stay performances and flicks with a roll-down theater display, orchestra pit and different facilities.

Creating such a venue has been a aim for performing arts advocates for years as related areas within the space have continued to shutter. Christian Cerria with Gilbane Improvement additionally advised the Metropolis Council in 2024 that the agency was “all in” on the mission.

“While this project has come to a close, the mission of the California Theater Consortium is far from over. The need for a permanent, affordable home for Berkeley’s performing arts community remains urgent, and we are actively pursuing new pathways and partnerships to make that vision a reality,” the assertion learn.

Group teams have fought onerous to protect arts areas in downtown Berkeley.

A grassroots motion of native arts lovers sought to save lots of the United Artists Theater, a once-grand 1,800-seat film palace in-built 1932 that was later transformed right into a seven-screen theater and was operated that means till being shuttered in 2023.

Regardless of its itemizing on the California Register of Historic Sources, that house is now slated for demolition and a 227-unit housing improvement with a floor ground cafe is proposed to interchange it.

Shattuck Cinemas, a movie show opened in 1988 at 2065 Kittredge St., has already been demolished to make means for an eight-story, 188-unit condo constructing.

If the California Theatre and United Artists Theater are each torn down, there can be no efficiency or film homes left standing in downtown Berkeley.

“A sad time for Berkeley’s arts scene — local performing arts groups are being forced to look beyond our city limits for space,” Glen Epperson, California Theater Consortium mission co-manager, stated in a remark below the social media announcement. “When our stages go dark, our culture dims with them. As someone once said, ‘Having a dark theater in your downtown is like having a corpse in your living room.’ It sends a chilling message: something vital is missing.”