Stockton's Empire Theatre sign was removed, here is why

An iconic Stockton landmark that has survived everything from a closure to multiple fires over the years is getting a second life.

One recent noticeable change to the building was the removal of the Stockton sign at the iconic Empire Theatre. The sign was brought down on Aug. 2.

"I'm one of the biggest fans of the sign, the idea of being able to use it in the project, sure would love to do that," said Allen Sawyer, co-owner of the former Empire Theatre and local attorney from The Law Offices of Allen Sawyer. "But do we know how we could do that yet, no. What we know is where the sign was located it's not a safe wall and needs to be demoed. And so there was no way of keeping it in the location where it was."

"We do have some interest in trying to incorporate it in the project. All of this kind of depends on which direction we go and what ultimately we're allowed to do," he added.

Sawyer purchased the property about six months ago or longer, he said. It was purchased for approximately $2 million.

"My purpose in taking on the Empire project, even though we knew it was pretty daunting was that we think it's critical to the revitalization of the Miracle Mile. We think now it's the time to step up and try to make that community vibrant again," Sawyer said.

Sawyer who grew up in Stockton, attended undergrad at the University of the Pacific. During that time he would visit The House of Shaw Café & Bakery, which he now owns.

"I've seen it rise and fall through that time. The previous owner that owned the Empire Theatre did a really good job of coming up with a strategy of making use out of that old structure. And it was a shame, the way that kind of was stopped," Sawyer said.

In 2021, a five-alarm fire, taking resources from across the Valley, damaged part of the building.

The west wall of the historic theatre was knocked down after Stockton engineers determined it was "very unsafe."

The city and fire department decided to knock it down before it caved on its own and potentially damaged neighboring structures, Deputy Fire Chief Shannon Lewis said at the time.

This was not the first time the building had burned. In 2018, the lobby and auditorium were burned in a two-alarm fire along with adjacent spaces that once housed lively commerce.

The building had been closed since June 2017.

City officials closed the Empire Theatre complex and evicted nine businesses after a long-running dispute with property owner Christopher “Kit” Bennitt over fire safety and unpermitted construction work. The businesses that were shut down at the two-story building included the Empresso Coffeehouse beneath the iconic Empire Theatre marquee, Gusty’s Wings, the Casa Flores and Centrale restaurant, a Realtor’s office, a beauty salon.

"What's really interesting is when the city shut it down, it was not horrible. It had some relatively minor issues. But once it was closed down it became a magnet for the homeless, and people (were) breaking and squatting on the property..." Sawyer said of the "horrible" conditions of the building. "Right now, we're in the process of securing, demoing, and getting the project ready to undertake a complete revitalization of the property."

Sawyer said percentage wise on square footage 50% will be able to be saved and the other 50% will have to be demolished.

"If people remember the area, which is the most south of the property, the more south you go on that block, the more stable the structure is, but there are parts of the structure that are literally unstable now after the fire, the demolition occurred to put out the fire and subsequent fires that have occurred," sawyer said. "There's huge portions of the center of the building to the north side, that is basically unsalvageable."

In May 2021, the community gathered to rally to save the facade of the Empire Theatre.

“We're here because we wanted to show that there’s a community-wide love and support for this building that’s a historical landmark that’s been here since 1945,” organizer Orion Camero of Placeholder magazine told The Record during the 2021 rally.

Discussions for the area that once housed the historical landmark have already started.

There are a couple of ideas but grant money for the Miracle Mile from Sacramento could have some influence on the outcome, Sawyer said.

"For example, we know that the Miracle Mile, it's critical that they have parking, intertwined with that area, and if they end up potentially narrowing the road or making less parking available, then it's going to be becoming more critical," Sawyer said. "So we would like to be able to incorporate a parking structure as part of what we're doing. We want to see if that's feasible or not. Because economically...it's hard to support that type of development, off parking costs."

The parking structure is just part of one idea.

The parking structure would be incorporated into something else. A parking structure behind the Empire Theatre with commercial spots in the front, is one of them.

"Without a doubt, there will be at least one or two significant restaurant locations that we're going to have part of that project. And there'll be other commercial activity that will be there without a doubt," Sawyer said.

Aside from the idea of a parking structure, commercial spaces and new restaurants, housing is also on the list.

"We've also thought about the idea of incorporating housing into the project. A combination of a mixed use, that would allow for some housing on site, which we think there would be a lot of interest in. To have nice modern housing built into the concept," Sawyer said. "There'll be apartment type living, for sure. It would be geared towards perhaps graduate students at UOP or smaller families."

"If there was a parking structure, it would be almost (an) integrated parking structure, there would be potentially housing and or commercial buildings, that wrap the parking structure in the front for sure ... if anybody has been to Santana Row in San Jose, and or some of the Dublin projects for renovating their downtown you would incorporate the parking in seamlessly not to overtake the feel of the neighborhood. Actually, the opposite, we would allow a good chunk of people to be able to come down and enjoy the Miracle Mile and not have to hunt for parking or struggle to find parking."

Sawyer said he expects for a "more realistic timeline" in the following two to three months.

"I think it's going to improve morale, everybody's going to want to come and look and see what they've done, and hopefully inspire other people to perhaps do facelifts on the front of their buildings as well," Tina Wells Lee board president of the Miracle Mile Improvement District said. "That would be great to get that energy going down here."

Sawyer said it is "refreshing" to have support from the city government with the project.

"I know that they will do a fantastic job renovating and bringing that end of the mile back to life," Lee said thanking Sawyer and his team.

Record reporter Angelaydet Rocha covers community news in Stockton and San Joaquin County. She can be reached at arocha@recordnet.com or on Twitter @AngelaydetRocha. Support local news, subscribe to The Stockton Record at https://www.recordnet.com/subscribenow.

This article originally appeared on The Record: Stockton's Empire Theatre sign removed