Given that, here's my guess: The lease came up for renewal. Bayou Place, recognizing the increased value of their real estate, asked for a big increase in rent. Angelika considered it, but upon further analysis realized that they couldn't make continued operations make economic sense with that rent amount. They continued the relationship after the conclusion of the lease at a lower rent while Bayou Place looked for a new customer. Bayou Place found another business that wanted the space at the higher rent, so they terminated the lease with Angelica. And, Angelica got very little notice because they had no contract left and got tossed out on their ear. So, Bayou Place would spin it as Angelika not willing to pay a market rate, and Angelika would spin it as an eviction.
Sad to see it go. Except I used to frequent that place, and it was getting run down quite thoroughly. No repairs to spilled beverages/moldy carpets, weeks-long trashbags over unrepaired toilets, seats with candy/crap on them that hadn't been cleaned/reupholstered in months. I hadn't been back during the "sorry, two of our theaters don't have air conditioning" phase, but that place was long since gone to seed. And it was never busy; even Saturdays were half-full. I would often find myself and whoever I brought with me as the only people in those theaters. I could buy the argument that the air conditioning was a standoff between tenant & landlord, but the rest was an obvious sign that they couldn't afford the basic upkeep on the place. I hope something comes back in its place. And I hope, if it does, that they play more revivals. What's the use of an independent(-minded) movie theater if you're only going to run current films?
Except there is something powerful about seeing a film, on actual film. No HD screen can match it. And there was, even in its disrepair, a certain charm about the place; it was our rat hole.
Yep. The films they chose were top notch; it got so that you didn't mind that the seat you were watching them in was cut up/falling apart. [Every time I drive by Numbers I think, dang, that building sure seemed four times larger back in high school. Then I shake my head, think about aging/my own mortality, and drive on.]
While zoning isn't at issue here (Houston not having zoning), in Austin, the area could have been restricted to certain kinds of venues and businesses. If the Austin equivalent of the Angelika were facing the same situation and an entirely diffferent kind of business... an office building, a car lot, were the entities wanting that spot from the landlord and were willing to pay extra for the spot, it is quite likely that that property's zoning wouldn't have permitted it. Austin has "entertainment districts" and the like, with zoning that fosters mixed use that is in synergy with what the city and the people want that area to be like. That concept might be a bit foreign in Houston, but not here in Austin.
RR, for all the times you type in your s/n after every post you should donate a dollar to the tip jar. That sh@@ is annoying and not even cool.
Doesn't Houston have something like the most theater seats for live arts in the nation, other than New York? The Houston arts and theater district is fairly top notch. Most of the theaters have some of the wealthiest oil tycoons around as their named patrons. Just because one Indy film place went out of business due to a rent dispute with a landlord doesn't really make Houston negligent.
The original comment was about "arts" in general and the apparent lack of "oil tycoon" money flowing into them. I was merely pointing out that Houston has a pretty darn good "arts" community, a lot of it directly funded by "oil tycoons".
Houston for it's southernness has pretty good culture. At least I think it does. It has the most downtown theater seating only behind new York. I saw a play one time. It was at the Music Hall. So that tells you how long ago that was. I've been trying too see the nutcracker for the longest time. I like to play dress up every now and then.
But then there's no risk of you getting mugged while walking back to your car, and that's half the fun!
there are more screens devoted to indie movies in a three block area of santa cruz, ca, than there are in houston. that's effin' sad.
