One year ago, Congress defunded public media. Now that we're 100% community funded, please become a sustaining member or increase your existing membership today.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
The Historic Westlake Theater Across From MacArthur Park Is For Sale
Westlake Theater (Photo by Alejandro De La Cruz via LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr)
The historic Westlake Theater next to MacArthur Park is up for sale. Realtors from Cushman & Wakefield, representing current owner CRA/LA, are currently taking bids for the 20,000-square-foot structure through August 10.
The theater opened near the intersection of Wilshire and Alvarado in 1926 as a vaudeville and movie palace. In 1935, S. Charles Lee (who designed the Los Angeles and Bruin theaters) built exterior additions, including a ticket kiosk. In 1991, the Westlake closed its theatrical operations, and was added to the National Register of Historic Places. The theater gained a second live as an indoor swap meet, and still maintains a ceiling mural by Anthony Heinsbergen, and its iconic three-story neon sign reading "Westlake Theater". In 2016, CRA/LA attempted to redevelop the theater and turn neighboring parcels into affordable housing.
But the project fell through. “No one wanted it," Jimmy Chai, one of Cushman & Wakefield's brokers for the theater, said, notes Curbed LA. "There were too many covenants. Now the CRA is just outright selling [the theater] just the way it is.”
"There's no base bid," Chai told LAist. "But we've already had a number of bidders." The sale is just for the theater itself, Chai continued, "the four parcels behind the theater are owned by the city." He added that, because of the structure's historical designation, the buyer would have to work within the current infrastructure of the theater and its zoning laws.
While the Westlake neighborhood is seeing billions of development dollars pour into neighborhoods all around it (Koreatown, Echo Park, Downtown), developers have been slow to enter Westlake itself. According to Curbed, "[t]he sale of the theater, and whatever it’s turned into, could very well direct the neighborhood’s future." Meanwhile, as Urbanize LA notes, plans for a nearby lot call for a performing arts center, 220-room hotel, and 31-story tower.
One year ago, Congress voted to defund public media, eliminating a critical $1.7 million from our budget every year going forward. But they couldn’t silence us, and we’re not going anywhere. LAist is now 100% community funded and that means we’re taking our future into our own hands and turning to you to keep local reporting strong.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
