The owner of the San Marco Theatre property intends to market the space for lease in the wake of the Jan. 1 closing of the longtime movie house.
“We plan to market the space to quality users beginning in a couple of weeks,” said Pamela Howard, property manager and the agent for the building owner, Jacksonville-based TSG Realty.
“An ideal user would take the whole space but we may need to divide it into 2-3 smaller spaces,” Howard said Dec. 28 by email.
Owners of the two-screen theater at 1966 San Marco Blvd. confirmed Dec. 28 they will close the venue New Year’s Day.
The last showings are Dec. 31.
“The owners were disappointed that the theater has closed. The operators worked so hard and tried to keep going but movie theaters are just closing everywhere. The business model doesn’t work anymore,” Howard said.
TSG Realty announced Sept. 8 it bought the San Marco Square properties anchored and leased by the San Marco Theatre and Stellers Gallery for $3.35 million.
Howard said then that the properties at 1990-1996 San Marco Blvd. total about 10,000 square feet and include an adjacent retail space.
Stellers Gallery is under lease at 1900 San Marco Blvd.
Property records show the theater comprises 5,421 square feet of space. The gallery and adjacent retail space total 4,372 square feet of space.
The third bay between the theater and the gallery is not occupied.
San Marco Theatre opened 84 years ago in 1938.
Howard said several historical theaters in Florida neighborhoods like Winter Park and South Beach, as well as recently in River Oaks in Houston, have been able to repurpose closed small theater buildings “with quality users while maintaining the original iconic look.”
“As we begin to plan the next steps, we are totally committed to forever preserving the look of the exterior so it always appears to be the San Marco Movie Theater,” she said.