AEG Sells Variety Arts Center

Anschutz Entertainment Group has sold the historic Variety Arts Center in downtown Los Angeles, adjacent to the L.A. Live project currently under construction by AEG, to former Pasadena Playhouse owner David Houk.

"We bought it to restore and produce new plays and musicals," Houk, who also heads downtown-based Houk Development Co., told the Los Angeles Downtown News. A restoration of the classic building as a theatrical destination seems to be a good fit for both buyer and seller.

"I would think because of [Houk’s] background that it’s a real opportunity to create a potential new theatre and entertainment center adjacent to the L.A. Live complex," Mike Pfeiffer, executive director of the South Park Stakeholders Group, told the paper. "It seems like the best fit. It’s a building that’s needed something like this for a long time."

The sale comes less than three years after AEG purchased the five-story Variety Arts Center for an estimated $8 million. Plans at the time were to develop it as a component of L.A. Live, which is expected to open its first phase later this year.

Houk’s business plan for the building was approved by AEG before the sale was completed, according to the Downtown News.

"It’s a fabulous location to put on shows," Houk told the paper. "I was told that more than dollars, [AEG was] interested in a compatible use for what they were doing."

The Variety Arts Center reportedly houses a 1,000-seat theatre, a smaller theatre and nightclub space, lounge, library and offices. It’s also a registered historic landmark.

The Italian Renaissance-style club and main theatre sport a gold-leafed, coffered ceiling and faux-marble columns.