Politics & Government
Is Skokie's Gorilla Tango Theater For Sale?
In 2004, the Skokie Theater received a $1.4 million renovation, but closed its doors due to lacking revenue. In March of last year, Bucktown's Gorilla Tango Theater purchased the building for $420,000. Now, the theater might be for sale.
After opening its doors about a year ago today, Gorilla Tango Theater (GTT), 7924 Lincoln Ave., is fielding sales offers, said GTT co-owner Kelly Williams.
“What’s happening right now is someone approached us [with an offer] and that’s how all this came about,” Williams told Patch. “We are talking to them. Its not that we’re interested in selling, but we’re open to receiving offers.
“We’re happy with where we’re at, but if someone made an offer we’d consider it," she added.
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A for-profit arts company that’s already having success at its Chicago-Bucktown location, the village and GTT felt the two could provide great synergy in the downtown area.
"The Skokie Theater is an important component of downtown Skokie's revitalization, along with the new Oakton-Skokie Swift station," said recently reelected Skokie Mayor George Van Dusen.
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ReelChicago.com reported that Dan Abbate, co-owner of GTT, “Found the listing for the space online in November of 2011."
“I told the realtor about our business model and he said it sounds like what the [village] wants,” Abbate told the online arts publication.
The Skokie Theater first opened its doors in 1912. In 2004, it received $1.4 million in renovations. In August of 2010, however, the theater went into recevership. It ultimately closed its doors on Jan. 1, 2012. GTT purchased the Skokie Theater building for $420,000 in March of last year.
The Skokie Theater (which GTT replaced) closed its doors after a long struggle with banks. The argument, according to many, was the shows weren’t selling enough tickets to turn a profit.
Enter Bucktown’s GTT, a for-profit arts group that has a proven track record at its Chicago location. After the Skokie Theater closed, the village and GTT felt the two would provide great synergy in the downtown area.
Williams noted that only the Skokie location would be sold in the event of a sale. Between its two buildings, Williams said the 9-year-old Bucktown location is the more profitable of the two. In fairness, however, the Skokie location has only been open for about a year.
“The Bucktown location is higher volume all around – audience, production,” Williams said. “Skokie is a microcosm of our [Bucktown location] – it’s a similar location, with similar operations to the Bucktown location.”
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