Ridgewood Theatre preservation group makes plea for buyer

From left: the Ridgewood Theatre, then and now

A group dedicated to the preservation of the recently landmarked Ridgewood Theatre at 55-27 Myrtle Avenue in Ridgewood, Queens is on a mission to find a “saviour” to protect and rehabilitate the building. Friends of Ridgewood Theater is looking for “preservation-friendly buyers who will acquire, restore and creatively… reuse the Ridgewood Theatre, ideally as a performing arts center with community spaces,” the group said. The building has been listed with commercial real estate services firm Massey Knakal for $3.4 million, and possible buyers would be eligible for grants and tax credits, the preservation group said. The group has reportedly been looking for a buyer since April. The three-story building, constructed in 1916, became a center for vaudeville and silent films during the first half of the 20th century, before claiming the designation as the first facility to show a “100 percent all-talking” motion picture in 1928. TRD