Culver City : Two Submit Theater Plans

Two companies remain in the running for the renovation of the historic Culver Theatre after other candidates failed to submit an outline of their plans on time.

Columbia Studios and the Theatre Corp. of America met the July 31 deadline for submitting their “statements of interest.” The deadline had been extended when three theatrical companies promised to respond by the end of August, but those outlines had not been submitted as of Tuesday.

According to the outlines, Columbia Studios wants to turn the facility into a state-of-the-art movie theater, where it can screen and premiere new films. The Theatre Corp. of America, which operates the Pasadena Playhouse, wants to stage live theatrical productions there.

The Culver Theatre, at Washington Boulevard and Duquesne Avenue, was built in the late 1940s as a 1,000-seat, single-screen movie house. In the late 1970s, the owner split the theater and operated the facility as a triplex until 1989. The city bought the building in 1985 and declared it a historical landmark earlier this year.

Staff will negotiate with the two companies before recommending in early November which should be awarded the renovation project.

The estimated cost of renovating the theater is between $1.7 and $3.8 million, with an additional $1.7 million required for asbestos removal, according to staff reports.