Loew’s Jersey Contract Valid

Judge Hector Velazquez dismissed a city attorney’s arguments that the lease that allows Friends of the Loew’s to manage the 86-year-old theater until February 2020 is invalid, according to the Jersey Journal.

The ruling puts at least a temporary stop to Mayor Steve Fulop’s plan to have concert promoter AEG Live take over management of the former movie palace. “This is a loss for residents because instead of the possibility of daily events with global talent coming to Jersey City, this instead guarantees the theater will sit as is with only sporadic silent movies, even less frequent concerts, no air conditioning and no ability of the group to complete the restoration,” city spokeswoman Jennifer Morrill told the Jersey Journal.

Fulop announced in February a plan that would bring AEG Live in to manage the Loew’s, despite the contract with FOL – which has been bringing some live events to the theatre as well as classic films.

Friends of the Loew’s, which organized and saved the classic theater from demolition in 1993 and manages it for $1 a year, sued, saying the city’s attempt amounted a breach of the lease.

The ruling that the lease is valid and enforceable may not necessarily mean the end of big concerts at the Jersey Loew’s.

FOL President Colin Egan told the Jersey Journal that he wants to sit down with city officials to discuss the venue’s future, adding he has no objection to a high-profile concert promoter bring in acts to play there.

“Yes, big concerts and big promoters, but in a way that supports and sustains affordable access to the arts,” he told the paper.