Swamplot brings an update on the Alabama Theater, where the now-closed BookStop was.
It looks like the former Alabama Theater — known since the early eighties as the Alabama Bookstop, and since last fall as that big vacant space for lease in Weingarten Realty’s Alabama Shepherd Shopping Center — is about to be gutted. A local construction company is currently taking bids from subcontractors for a rather complete interior demolition. The plans, prepared by Heights Venture Architects, show major alterations to the floor, walls, and ceilings.
The theater’s original sloped floor will be buried under a new concrete slab; wood floors inserted during the 1983 bookstore conversion will be removed. For now, the balcony will remain.
Click the link to see diagrams and more. Frankly, saving the exterior is about as much as I’d hoped for. I never figured the interior would be preserved in any real fashion. It’s a shame, but it’s still better than demolition.
According to Prime Property, Weingarten says it “has not signed a lease nor has any lease under (letter of intent) with any particular tenant at this time”, though it did not say there were no active plans to alter the interior. We’ll see what happens. Hair Balls and a subsequent post on Swamplot have more.