[Via Juni Safont/Curbed Photo Pool]
The current state of New York City's movie theaters is bleak at best, and it look like it's about to get worse. After almost 15 years in business, the Lower East Side's treasured Sunshine Cinema is being primed for redevelopment. According to The Real Deal, the historic property on East Houston Street is in the process of being marketed to developers, with an asking price pushing upwards of $35 million. The property offers around 44,500 buildable square feet, or 56,000 square feet with an inclusionary housing bonus.
Since 2001, the beloved arthouse theater has been a favorite of New York's film buffs, with its midnight screenings consistently drawing huge and diverse crowds. However, the theater has struggled to keep up with the neighborhood's rents (Sunshine pays around $200,000 annually). In 2012, Community Board 3 denied the Sunshine a full liquor license, which representatives of Landmark Theatres (the group that owns the Sunshine) argued was key to the theater's longterm survival.
The theater's lease runs through 2018.
· Sunshine Cinema's home quietly being marketed for sale [TRD]
· All Sunshine Cinema coverage [Curbed]
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