Synopsis:

The old Loew’s Pitkin Theater in Brooklyn will soon go through another adaptive reuse process, bringing new life to this long neglected property. Opened in 1929 with an 85-foot tower, the theatre was designed by Thomas W. Lamb and included 2,817 seats. After the theatre shut down, it was eventually turned into a church and later into a discount furniture store. This new adaptive reuse project, made possible by New Market tax credits, will see the structure transformed into a mixed use program with a charter school and retail space. Although it has not be designated a landmark, the developers intend to maintain most of the exterior but completely rebuild the interior. “An entirely new steel structural grid is going inside the existing shell,” said the project architect, Dan Garthe of Kitchen & Associates of Collingswood, N.J. The theatre’s neighborhood of Brownsville has seen significant economic decline, with the annual household median income at $15,700. The City however is taking an active role in reinvesting in this area, and this development will help to further that cause. The Ascend Learning Charter School will relocate from Rockaway Parkway in Brownsville to the theatre building and occupy 90,000 square feet. The program also calls for 60,000 square feet of retail space: 20,000 has been leased by a regional clothing store, 20,000 has been leased by a national clothing retailer, and the remaining 20,000 will be set aside for local businesses.