Plans unveiled last week to turn the 4th Avenue Theatre in downtown Anchorage into a complex of hotel rooms, apartments, shops and offices have galvanized its former owner into trying once more to preserve the historic building.
Robert Gottstein, who owned the theater for 18 years and spent $2.7 million on renovations, is part of a group planning to gather pledges to buy the theater on behalf of the city at a rally in front of the theater on Saturday afternoon.
"I think the first thing is to get it into city hands at private expense and then assemble a committee to figure out what to do with it," Gottstein said. "I am prepared to contribute, like I hope a lot of other people will."
Community groups have tried and failed in the past to raise enough money to buy the theater. In 2006 voters rejected a $2 million bond proposition that would have helped the municipality relieve Gottstein of the theater.
Deep in debt from losses on separate investments, Gottstein could not avoid foreclosure. Current owner Peach Investments LLC then bought the property at a foreclosure sale for about $1.65 million. The company plans to present its redevelopment proposal to the Anchorage Assembly on Tuesday.
Calls to Peach Investments this week were not returned.
By Thursday evening, the Facebook page "Save the 4th Avenue Theatre," had more than 2,000 likes. One person posted an old photo showing a long line outside. Others shared personal memories and lamented the potential loss of the Art Deco landmark, completed in 1947 by pioneer industrialist Austin "Cap" Lathrop.
But whether the nostalgia and sentimentality expressed online will translate into a real effort to preserve the theater remains to be seen. Gottstein said attendance at the rally, scheduled for 1 p.m. on Saturday, will help him decide.
"If 10 people show up, then we'll say, OK, we've done our best," Gottstein said. "If 1,000 people show up, I'll be shouting, 'Thank you!'"
If he manages to collect enough pledges, Gottstein plans to display them before the Assembly as evidence that it should not support Peach Investments' redevelopment plans.
"If we don't get enough people, that'll be the end of it," Gottstein said. "I'm not so convinced it needs to be saved, but I feel like I'm in a unique position to help those that do because I owned it for 18 years."
The prospect of a big private development project downtown that would bring in more property taxes and, potentially, more housing may outweigh preservation efforts. The estimated cost for the "4||5" project, referring to its location spanning Fourth and Fifth avenues, is $150 million to $200 million and includes redevelopment of the theater and surrounding properties.
Chris Schutte, executive director for the Anchorage Downtown Partnership, was involved in the effort to buy the theater from Gottstein in the mid-2000s. Had the deal been a success, the nonprofit he heads would have taken ownership.
"There have been multiple attempts to find a way to preserve and also make the building useful again," Schutte said. "Everyone would have liked to see the theater saved, but it's not financially or structurally feasible."
Schutte said he believes Peach Investments, owned by Joe and Maria Fang, "will attempt to re-create or preserve the elements that are iconic, like the giant neon sign."