Future uncertain for historic Wilmington venue after 'notice of condemnation'

A building in downtown Wilmington that was a destination for movies, live music and events for over 75 years before abruptly closing in 2017 has been hit with a "notice of condemnation," with inspectors citing a host of structural and safety issues.

The bright red condemnation notice was posted in June in the front window at 208 Market St., which opened as The Manor movie theater in 1941 before becoming a series of music venues and dance clubs starting in the late 1980s. The notice cites "bad condition of walls," "defective construction" and "decay," and notes a leaking roof, "flooding" and "open electrical outlets."

Also visible through the window is a chalkboard, seemingly untouched for nearly six years, listing acts who were scheduled to play the Blue-Eyed Muse music venue, which was open for just three months in 2017 and was the last business to operate in the space. (Notable artists who were supposed to play the Muse include rapper Azealia Banks and jam band Dumpstaphunk.)

The Blue-Eyed Muse closed in 2017 after county building inspectors found 29 "serious structural and safety code violations," including broken exit signs, problems with balcony seating and an open sewer sump pit that was allowing sewer gas to leak into the building.

Inspectors identified electrical, mechanical and fire code violations, and called for an evaluation of the building's roof and foundation. Also in 2017, county spokesperson Jessica Loeper told the StarNews that "the owner is fully agreeable to comply with Building Safety's findings so that the building can be occupied again."

Last days of the Blue Eyed Muse Inspection shows 29 code violations at downtown club

Nearly six years later the saga is playing out again, with an ending that's yet to be written.

Alex Riley, communications and outreach coordinator with New Hanover County, said the county held an administrative hearing July 28 with the building's owner, Joseph H. Hou, who also owns the longstanding Wilmington restaurant Szechuan 132. Hou owns 208 Market St. as the agent of 208 Market Properties, LLC, which he incorporated in 2002.

Riley said the purpose of the hearing last week was "to direct (the) owner to address all code deficiencies, or secure it from entry."

Riley said that during the hearing Hou agreed to bring to the building up to code. Hou was joined by a representative from HKS Construction, and by a potential tenant who wants to turn the space into a nightclub. Hou now has 10 days from the time of the hearing to file permits for work that would bring the building up to code.

According to a letter sent to Hou on July 20 by Carmen Plummer-Johnson, a building code official and code enforcement inspector with New Hanover County, after an in-person inspection with Hou on June 6 he was given 10 days "to inform our department of your plans to bring your property into compliance. As of July 18, 2023, there has been no response from you."

The letter said Hou had been directed "to remedy the defective conditions by repairing, closing, vacating, or demolishing the building … or taking other necessary steps, as the inspector found that there is imminent danger to life or other property with any occupancy."

Plummer-Johnson said that condemnation essentially means a building needs to be brought up to code, but that it "doesn't need to be torn down, necessarily."

Neither Hou nor HKS Construction returned messages seeking comment.

Travis Gilbert, director of the nonprofit Historic Wilmington Foundation, said that since the building is located in the historic overlay of downtown's central business district, any demolition would need to be approved by the city of Wilmington's Historic Preservation Commission, which could institute a 365-day stay of demolition.

Losing the 82-year-old building, the future of which appears uncertain, would mean losing a piece of Wilmington history.

Longtime Wilmingtonians remember watching movies there, often animated Disney fare, when it was The Manor. When The Manor closed in 1985, it was the last dedicated movie theater downtown.

In the late 1980s the building reopened as a music venue called Jacob's Run, named for the mysterious system of underground tunnels beneath downtown Wilmington. Local rock groups played there, as did touring acts like hardcore heroes Fugazi and roots rockers Southern Culture on the Skids.

After closing in the mid-1990s, Jacob's Run was followed by nightclubs called The Brikhouse and Hammerjax.

In 2013, the space again became a music venue. Ziggy's by the Sea was operated by Jay Stephens, the longtime owner of Winston-Salem venue Ziggy's, and drew such touring acts as Billy Bob Thornton and the Boxmasters, The Reverend Horton Heat, Soul Asylum and George Clinton. The venue also hosted events for the Cucalorus Film Festival and the "One Tree Hill" convention Return to Tree Hill in 2015.

Ziggy's closed in 2015, and in 2016 the venue reopened as the Throne Theater, with new owners promising $200,000 in renovations while hosting such acts as the hard rockers Sevendust and country singer Margo Price.

Finally, 2017 saw a three-month run as the Blue-Eyed Muse, which staged concerts by indie rocker Conor Oberst and others.

With a capacity of about 700, the Blue-Eyed Muse was the last true mid-size music venue in Wilmington, able to attract acts that might not fill up larger venues, like Greenfield Lake Amphitheater or CFCC's Wilson Center, but for whom Wilmington's assortment of music clubs with capacities under 200 would likely be too small.

While 208 Market St. has sat vacant for the past six years, changes have occurred all around it. A new building next door hosts Coglin's nightclub, the Paper Cuts bookstore and other businesses. On the other side of it, a former law office at 214 Market St. is being transformed into a location for the Ponysaurus Brewing Company out of Durham.

This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Wilmington's former Manor movie theater and music venue gets condemned