COVID-19 forces sale of historic downtown Tucson hotel to local developers

The Arizona Theatre Company has sold one of its historic downtown buildings to local developers who want to both repurpose the iconic building and help support the arts company through its dark pandemic period.

The Glenwood Hotel, at 343 S. Scott Ave., was sold by ATC for $1.1 million last week. It was used for administrative staff for the past 14 years.

“We’ve been dark for a year without any way to generate tickets sales or subscriptions,” said Geri Wright, the theater’s managing director. “The money will be used for programming and keeping people employed.”

She stressed that ATC will continue to have a presence in Tucson.

“I don’t want people to think we’re leaving town — we’re not leaving,” she said. “Tucson is our home and will always be our home.”

She said announcements on partnerships for office space are forthcoming. The theatre performances are held at the Temple of Music & Art, 330 S. Scott Ave.

Local broker and investor Kevin Volk, one of the partners in the purchase of Glenwood Hotel, called it “love at first sight” when he learned the building was up for sale.

“I think Scott Avenue is about the most magical street in Tucson,” he said. “And we got it from the Arizona Theatre Company to, hopefully, ensure their success when they can come back. It’s cool to play some small role in that.”

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Plans for the future use of the hotel haven’t been decided, Volk said.

“We’re still exploring the property and what is possible,” he said. “The one thing we know is we’re committed to honoring the property and preserving the architecture.”

As the sale just closed, there is no firm timeline for development announcements, said Volk, a Tucson native.

The latter was a selling point for the ATC.

“It was key,” Wright said. “We had a lot of offers on the building and decided to go local ... that was one of the deciding factors.”

The building sits on .19 acres of land with close to 11,000 square feet of space.

According to the National Register of Historic Places, the hotel was built in 1908, but Pima County records show a building date of 1930.