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Eastown Theatre in Detroit For Sale
posted by
steelbeard1
on
January 3, 2005 at 7:49 am
DETROIT, MI—The Eastown Theatre has been put up for sale. The owner is asking $2,000,000 for this building. The on line listing for this theater is at http://listing.loopnet.com/14066934.
I thank Roger Katz and Neo for the info.
Comments (4)
It’s a shame that the theater is located in a bad area of town. Truely a unique theater.
Perhaps if this became a local attraction the area wouldn’t be so bad.
What a wonderful project for a school of building trades! The auto companies and building unions used to sponsor such types of training, but with cost-cutting measures, they no longer do. A school would be a revenue-generating venture for the area, something sorely needed.
While I’m happy about the resurgence of the downtown area, especially the Westin Book Cadillac, I’m concerned for the neighborhoods, such as this one. My mother grew up here in the 1930s & 1940s when it was predominately Belgian, German, Dutch and Italian. She says (she’s now 80) she remembers smelling the peonies that intertwined the cyclone fences between the houses while walking to school. How lovely!
Part of the problem is there are no jobs in this area, few stores, and a lot of drugs and apathy because people have no hope. This was a middle class area of fine homes and businesses that, like much of Detroit, hit upon hard times when America decided to create a huge trade deficit instead of making things themselves. Detroiter, after all, make things. Just look at the level of craftsmanship in the buildings and homes, even in the worst areas of town, (which this is not) and it will be quite evident.
Every resurgence must start somewhere, and the Eastown would be perfect for the Harper-Van Dyke neighborhood, and the East Side in general. The Eastown is at the intersection of Harper and Van Dyke and just2 blocks from I-94…very accessible. I hope some one with vision, dedication, and, oh yeah, money (or backing) comes along before it is too late.
The Eastown was used as a movie theatre during the mid-80’s. It had a full projection booth and screen. Mainly I showed horror films after they had had their run at major venues. One night a rat brushed an audience members foot and 600 people rushed out the front doors and blocked traffic on Harper Ave. for twenty minutes.