The 4th Avenue Theatre, a cherished but unused landmark that has stood downtown for seven decades, inspired impassioned public testimony against its redevelopment on Tuesday night, despite its owner's assurances that he would do all he could to preserve its historic character.
In seeking tax abatements for the project from the municipality, Joe Fang of Peach Investments told the Anchorage Assembly that the company would do all it could to preserve the theater's most beloved features, including the interior murals and the sign outside.
Fang said, however, that the company had realized soon after purchasing the theater several years ago that it was in dire need of major repairs.
"It looked good on the outside, but was like a person with cancer all over," Fang said. "It was falling apart."
Longtime Anchorage resident Rhoda Terinsky said the city should restore the theater, rather than assist Peach Investments in moving forward with its project.
"Many people in Alaska have never been inside the theater. They have no idea how beautiful it is. And we're talking about destroying it?"
The Fang family, through another of its business entities, 3000 C Street, LLC, has already received a $20 million, 25-year loan through a state corporation. The loan from the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority will "fund tenant improvements at its office building at 188 W. Northern Lights Blvd and the 4th Avenue Theater (sic)," according to AIDEA meeting minutes from November 2010.
It was unclear what portion of the loan, whose 3.27 percent interest rate is low relative to AIDEA's other loans, would be put toward the theater.
On the municipal level, Peach Investments is seeking deteriorated area status for the 4th Avenue Theatre and surrounding properties, which would open the way for the company to obtain significant property tax exemptions. Regarding the importance of those exemptions, Fang said, "With the tax incentive, it may make the project, but without the tax incentive, it will break the project."
The same ordinance that would grant deteriorated area status for the theater would also cover the Northern Lights Inn, another Peach Investments property. The ordinance would waive or reduce fees at the Anchorage Regional Landfill for disposal of materials from demolition of the dilapidated Midtown building.
The Assembly said it would continue hearing testimony at 1 p.m. Thursday.