City officials are moving ahead with plans to sell or lease the historic Senator Theatre to an operator who would keep it running as a movie theater or convert the 70-year-old landmark to a performing arts venue.
In a request for proposals issued Monday, the Baltimore Development Corp. said it is seeking plans that would keep the 900-seat theater active, allow it to serve as an anchor for nearby communities and maintain the building's art deco exterior and interior features.
The city purchased the financially troubled theater's mortgage in May after the owner, Thomas Kiefaber, was unable to make payments on a $1.2 million loan that the city had partially guaranteed.
The city took ownership of the theater in July after a foreclosure auction. Kiefaber, who has continued to show films under an informal agreement with the city, had until last Friday to file a formal challenge to the foreclosure sale and did not do so, clearing the way for the city to take title to the property on York Road in Northeast Baltimore.
The 1939 theater, the last of the single-screen movie houses that once dotted the city, is viewed as an anchor for the nearby Belvedere Square market.
"The important thing is to let that important anchor continue to be an important anchor," said Kim Clark, the BDC's executive vice president.
"We'll be looking at the total city returns, not just the price, but keeping a lively, active venue in that community, something that is attractive not just for city residents but for the surrounding counties," she said.
The city is looking for developers with experience in developing, managing and promoting movie or performing arts theaters. The Senator could be used for movies and/or live performances with other, complementary uses, such as restaurants, Clark said.
The city will consider proposals from for-profit and nonprofit groups.
The July auction drew four registered bidders but only one offer, from an anonymous bidder, other than the city's $810,000 winning bid.
At the time, at least two prominent local businessmen, developer David Cordish and the Charles Theatre's operator, James "Buzz" Cusack, had said they might be interested in running the theater.
On Monday, Cordish said in an e-mail that his company would not submit a bid, but would step in to help keep the theater going.
"What we've said is that if the city is stuck, call us; we will form a nonprofit," Cordish said.
