A campaign to purchase, remodel and re-launch Lafayette’s small but streamlined Park Theater as a re-visioned model of suburban re-use took a significant step forward this weekend with the announcement that the deco-ish cinema has been purchased by a community trust.
Close of escrow was celebrated by the community-based Park Theater Trust (TPTT) with the announcement of a partnership agreement between TPTT and practiced movie-house operators Adam Bergeron and Jaimi Holker of CinemaSF in San Francisco.
Though the effort remains $5 million away from the funding needed to bring TPTT’s vision of a modernized, two-theater, ADA accessible cinema complete with a rooftop bar to Lafayette, the group paused this week to mark the partnership as CinemaSF’s first foray into the East Bay – a vision that if and when realized will be able to offer first-run art and indie films in a suburban location.
Plans are to reopen the Park in 2023, with interested parties or, perhaps, a person with very deep pockets able to access additional information about the effort at www.parktheatertrust.org.
Parking.
Sisyphus comes to mind.
5 million is pocket change in Lafayette. Should have that collected in a week or so.
Close it off, make it pedestrian friendly, have a little coffee bar out front and that bar thing on the roof — but don’t bring more cars into the area with out having a place to put them all.