Designs for Berkeley’s California Theatre would hold facade, insert high-rise

The future new operator of downtown Berkeley’s California Theatre wants to construct a significant-increase apartment developing catering to college student renters at the site — although retaining the motion picture palace’s distinct facade and neon marquee.

Rhode Island-based Gilbane Improvement plans to submit a proposal this summer months that calls for demolishing most of the present theater at 2115 Kittredge St. and making “approximately 15 stories” of new housing driving the facade, Growth Director Christian Cerria stated in an job interview. Gilbane is also doing work with a coalition of area accomplishing arts teams to produce a system for a new 300-seat theater and “creative arts hub” that would occupy the building’s floor floor.

The strategies cleared an early hurdle this month, when Berkeley’s Landmarks Preservation Commission voted to landmark the California Theatre’s Art Deco-period facade and mid-century marquee, but elected not to prolong those protections to the relaxation of the 109-yr-previous making.

“It’s a great opportunity to breathe new lifestyle into the California Theatre,” Cerria reported, adding that the challenge would “restore its majestic entrance facade and marquee to its previous glory by means of considerate construction of a new dynamic setting up.”

Gilbane, which has created student-centric-apartment properties near higher education campuses throughout the place, has not but determined how many apartments it needs to contain in the undertaking a block from UC Berkeley. The corporation and the theater’s longtime homeowners have arrived at an settlement on a sale that is established to shut after the job gets metropolis approval, explained Cerria, who declined to share the buy cost.

Downtown has a few properties that are at the very least 15 tales tall now, but that quantity could double in the in the vicinity of long term as metropolis leaders glance to motivate more dense housing design in Berkeley’s core. The California Theatre task is 1 of a few new downtown high-rises proposed about the earlier 9 months, signing up for a 17-tale creating pitched for the intersection of Oxford and Center streets, and another developer’s system for a 25-story tower at 2190 Shattuck Ave.

The theater has been shuttered because the early days of the pandemic, a short-term closure that grew to become lasting very last drop when the proprietors declined to renew the lease of longtime operator Landmark Theatres.

Preservationists and devotees of the theater had asked the landmarks fee to declare the complete making a landmark, and garnered hundreds of signatures for an online petition contacting on the Metropolis Council to aid organize an hard work to restore the California in its present variety. The property’s entrepreneurs contended that when the facade and marquee are distinct attributes worthy of safety, the similar just can’t be reported for features like the building’s all round height or brick sides.

The commission sided with the house entrepreneurs, agreeing with a town staff recommendation that termed for preserving the “character-defining functions of the assets.” Users also noted the commission does not have the authority to landmark the inside characteristics of privately owned buildings, this means it could not buy components these as the California’s 500-seat principal auditorium preserved.

Dale Sophiea, a previous theater supervisor who aided manage the preservation campaign, stated that even though he hoped the overall constructing could be safeguarded, he was heartened to see that the proposed task consists of space for the carrying out arts.

“I’m dissatisfied, but as much as the disappointment goes, there are worse situations than the a single that was presented,” Sophiea explained.

“At least it will be a cultural centre,” he additional, however he is wary of a situation in which people options slide as a result of and the performing arts space never ever turns into a truth.

Cerria acknowledged that which includes a theater adds “unique challenges” to the undertaking, but claimed Gilbane is “very committed” to it.

The developer is operating with a freshly shaped nonprofit called the California Theater Consortium, led by Youth Musical Theater Enterprise Director Jennifer Boesing, to establish options for the house and provide jointly quite a few corporations that could gain from it. Boesing mentioned the consortium is in talks with about a dozen neighborhood arts teams — which includes Berkeley Ballet, Berkeley Symphony, Future Arts and Youth Musical Theater Business — to find out about their requires. Numerous of people groups have been exploring for a long term home for many years, she mentioned.

Boesing and Cerria reported they hope the California Theatre task can a person day involve place for dance, audio and stay theater performances, as nicely as movie screenings.

“We truly feel seriously hopeful that this could serve an massive volume of people,” Boesing said.