A staff report to the Los Angeles Board of Cultural Affairs Commissioners details plans from Azure Development to revive the long-shuttered Reseda Theatre. 

Built in 1948 at 18443 Sherman Way, the property has long been a target for redevelopment near the commercial core of Reseda, with prior efforts yielding new affordable housing complex on an adjacent site. Azure Development, which is leading plans to remake the 80-year-old venue, has proposed a plan which would return the property to active use at a 15,860-square-foot food hall with a "microcinema." 

View looking northeast from across Sherman WaySMS Architects

The building’s ground floor would include six tenants and a beer garden, while the buildings newly built second flood would include two screens with seating for up to 100 spectators along with a concession area. the space would be used for screenings, as well as community meetings and exhibitions. 

SMS Architecture is designing the project, which would preserve the exterior of the existing building, while also restoring its marquee and providing new exterior lighting to improve nighttime visibility and safety.

Food hall interiorSMS Architects

The current plan for the theater, which closed in 1988, is a backup to an original vision pushed in 2017 which had called for reopening the property as part of a larger multiplex.

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