The Garden Oaks Theater is a historical cinema opened in 1947 as the sister theater to the River Oaks Theatre. Since its inception, the venue operated as a theater for over 50 years before its transformation into a worship facility for Grace Church.
Following its acquisition by an investment fund, developers planned to demolish the theater to make way for a shopping mall. Recently, however, through the efforts of film and preservation nonprofit Arthouse Houston, developers have agreed to a demolition halt.
Arthouse Houston – previously known as Friends of River Oaks Theatre – announced a capital campaign this past February to raise required funds to salvage the Garden Oaks Theater. With the help of “a small group of angel donors“, the nonprofit announced that it had raised enough funds for a partial, non-refundable deposit to delay the theater’s demolition. This has paved a way for the non-profit to potentially purchase the theater, so long as it is able to raise the required $7.1 million.
Though developers have agreed to a halt in the demolition, the nonprofit maintains that the efforts were merely the first steps in the theater’s preservation. The full $7.1 million in donations is necessary to salvage the Garden Oaks Theater and must be put forth within a 90-day window.
According to the Arthouse, there are two possible options to enable extensions in the 30-day window. The first option would be for Arthouse Houston to pay extension fees to the developers. Likely, these fees would be non-refundable but would buy more time in the potential destruction.
The other option would be for the nonprofit to negotiate an ancillary development deal; this would mean a third-party developer would have to agree to incorporate the existing structure into a larger development, such as a shopping center. In this case, Arthouse Houston would serve as a tenant rather than the owner.
“Arthouse Houston’s potential acquisition of the Garden Oaks Theater represents a rare opportunity for Houston to preserve its architectural history and establish this theater as a designated protected landmark, so that it may continue to be a vibrant part of our city as a community arts and film center”.
For more information on donating to the saving of Garden Oaks Theater, visit Arthouse Houston’s official website. The group has stated that all contributions to the fund will go toward the preservation of the theater. Donations to the fund are also tax deductible.