SAN JOSE — A local group has bought the historic Burbank Theater in San Jose, ending a saga that included a loan from one of Wall Street’s most notorious financial firms, a lawsuit and a foreclosure.
The immediate questions in the wake of the purchase: the next steps that face the dilapidated, long-shuttered, seven-decade-old theater that’s described as an “art moderne classic” dating back to a bygone era of cinemas.
The buying entity for the Burbank Theater is an investment group linked to business executives based in Milpitas, according to Santa Clara County property records.
Tru Investments Inc. paid $1.6 million for the site occupied by the old movie house, documents filed on Jan. 13 with the county Recorder’s Office show.
The buying group obtained $1.2 million in financing from several individuals, county property records filed on Jan. 18 show.
The Milpitas-based buyer lists Fred Meyer and Hung Tran as principal executives, according to real estate documents.
The seller was U.S. Bank, which had seized the property in 2019 through a foreclosure proceeding arising from $3.7 million in unpaid mortgage debts.
U.S. Bank had taken over the administration of a loan that originally was provided in 2005 by a unit of Lehman Brothers Bank, the defunct Wall Street investment firm that collapsed in 2008 at the height of the subprime mortgage crisis.
In 2005, the Lehman unit had provided a $1.8 million mortgage for the Burbank Theater property.
Bay Area residents Ali Dastgah, Hassan Dastgah and Zohreh Dastgah had obtained a mortgage for the property when they bought the Burbank Theater property in 2005.
But the Dastgah group failed over the years to repay the mortgage, which led to a lawsuit filed by the bank, the eventual foreclosure of the mortgage and the bank’s ownership of the property, which consists of two parcels.
The future of the old movie theater has landed on the front burner of the Preservation Action Council of San Jose, which hopes that the building, originally constructed in 1949, can survive and escape the wrecking ball.
“An Art Moderne classic from the golden age of cinema, the Burbank Theater stands ready and waiting for a new lease on life,” the Preservation Action group states in a post on its website.
The theater is a mainstay of the Burbank district of San Jose, the preservationists opined.
“The former theater’s soaring, three-sided sign tower and angular marquee are beloved beacons for the surrounding Burbank neighborhood,” the Preservation Action Council stated.
The foreclosure harmed the theater’s condition, according to the preservationists.
“Following a recent foreclosure, the now-vacant property has suffered greatly under absentee bank ownership,” the Preservation Action Council stated.
The group said it wants to work with the new owners to find ways for the structure to be saved.
“PAC SJ is working closely with community stakeholders to identify potential reuses,” the preservationists stated.
However, no legal impediments exist that would guarantee the building’s future existence.
“Because the building is listed on Santa Clara County’s Historic Resources Inventory but is not yet designated a County Landmark, legal protections against its demolition are limited,” the preservation group stated on its website.
Source: www.mercurynews.com