I was walking by the Rainbow today and saw some guys outside cleaning it out. I convinced one of the gentlemen to let me peek inside (even though he was adamant that I needed to call the landlord first—cheers to feminine wiles!).
There’s water damage to the ceiling in various, but they’ve been trying to keep it under control until the property is sold. It still has about 1700 seats, and the interior seems to be relatively unchanged. It’s clearly been painted over and simplified, but I noticed a chandelier in the lobby that had to be original (as well as a few other things—it was very dark, and I only had a few moments to look in as my eyes adjusted form the sun outside).
I knew the theater was on the market was $12 million, and asked the guy how things were progressing. He said that someone was making a bid on the property for significantly less than the listed price, and that their intent was to turn the Rainbow back into a theater. Awesome! It sounds like the current owners really love the building and want to sell it to someone who can restore it to some extent. At the very least, I don’t believe the building will be torn down like so many other theaters in the neighborhood. I’d LOVE to have an indie film house around here—but any sort of theater would do. Bring back the Rainbow!
I was walking by the Rainbow today and saw some guys outside cleaning it out. I convinced one of the gentlemen to let me peek inside (even though he was adamant that I needed to call the landlord first—cheers to feminine wiles!).
There’s water damage to the ceiling in various, but they’ve been trying to keep it under control until the property is sold. It still has about 1700 seats, and the interior seems to be relatively unchanged. It’s clearly been painted over and simplified, but I noticed a chandelier in the lobby that had to be original (as well as a few other things—it was very dark, and I only had a few moments to look in as my eyes adjusted form the sun outside).
I knew the theater was on the market was $12 million, and asked the guy how things were progressing. He said that someone was making a bid on the property for significantly less than the listed price, and that their intent was to turn the Rainbow back into a theater. Awesome! It sounds like the current owners really love the building and want to sell it to someone who can restore it to some extent. At the very least, I don’t believe the building will be torn down like so many other theaters in the neighborhood. I’d LOVE to have an indie film house around here—but any sort of theater would do. Bring back the Rainbow!