Will the Ventnor Movie Theater finally be condemned and knocked down? Are the owners letting that building sit and decay in order to use it as a tax write off?
Sitting dormant across from a busy WAWA on a high profile corner of Ventnor, sits the slowing rotting Ventnor Theater complex, owned by Frank Theatres, LLC of Jupiter Florida.
The once magnificent Art Deco styled movie house had a long, illustrious run. But with the rise of Netflix, multi-plexes and a declining full-time population, the once popular theater became a money loser. After a brief fix and rebound run, the Ventnor Twin closed for good in 2004.
Today, the shuttered Ventnor Theater is 19,000 sq. ft of high-profile blight that casts a negative impression on this jewel of a town called Ventnor.
A barber shop & cleaners bailed from that creepy corner after dealing with smells, creaks, leaks and other unpleasant oozings seeping in from the adjacent bowels of the once majestic theater.
Banish the Blight.
In 1998, the Ventnor movie theater was shut down after city inspection revealed it was on verge of collapse.
- The long-abandoned movie house is an eyesore.
- Threat to public health. Code Violations.
- City is hoping to get it condemned
- It drags down property values
City officials want the property owner, Franks, to attend a hearing Nov. 8, at City Hall. An independent judge will rule whether the property can be fixed, or simply demolished.
If the Ventnor Movie Theatre owner fails to rectify the problem within approx 90 days, the city can lawfully take matters into their own hands, and demolish the eyesore.
- Back taxes are owed.
- Theater opened in the 1920s.
- Deemed uninhabitable in 1998.
- Frank Theaters bought building in 1998 & remodeled. In 2004, it closed again.
Will it finally be condemned? Investors have been interested in the site, but the cost of repairs or demolition could be a drawback for investors.
Eminent-domain proposal was on the table at one time. Redevelopment of this property could help raise property values.