What is now the theater’s lobby would become a commercial space, with plans suggesting a café as one possible tenant. Plans for the half-acre site call for units ranging from studios to five-bedroom apartments. The San Jose Mercury News reported the company bought the theater for $7 million.

Panoramic’s plans were first reported by. A rendering shows the proposed 17-story, 293-unit apartment project Panoramic Interests wants to build at 2274 Shattuck Ave. Panoramic Interests owner Patrick Kennedy could not be reached for more information about the project. Panoramic is seeking approval for the project under an expedited city process created as a result of the 2018 state housing law SB 330, which speeds permitting for new housing and limits local governments’ authority to block or delay projects that comply with existing zoning laws. Representatives for Regal Cinemas, the Tennessee-based chain that operates the theater, did not respond to requests for information about its future. It’s not clear how long the theater will remain open.

But most of the structure behind that facade would be demolished and replaced with 293 apartments, 24 of which would be affordable for renters considered very low income. The project would preserve the building’s art deco United Artists facade, which has looked out onto Shattuck Avenue for the past 90 years. The days of downtown Berkeley’s last commercial movie theater could be numbered.ĭeveloper Panoramic Interests submitted preliminary plans this week to build a 17-story apartment complex at what is now the Regal UA Berkeley theater at 2274 Shattuck Ave. Credit: Ximena Natera for Berkeleyside/CatchLight Local The 90-year-old theater’s art deco facade would be retained in the project. Plans submitted by a developer this week call for building a 17-story, 293-unit apartment complex at what is now the Regal UA Berkeley movie theater.

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