WESTWOOD—The lease for the Landmark Regent Theatre in Westwood will be ending in less than a month and is expected to be replaced with restaurants.
The property is owned by the Kohl Family Office, or KFO, the same organization who owns the Kohl’s Department Store chain. Steven Sann, Chairman for the Westwood Community Council, has been in contact with Kohl’s leader Allen Kohl, speaking about future plans for the property.
According to Sann, the property itself was built in the late 1940s and was first made into a barber shop named Oakley’s. It later became a retail sporting good store named Reñe Sports. In 1966, the property became a theater house to two theaters, Laemmle Theatres and Mann Theatres before becoming Landmark Regent Theatre.
The Landmark Regent Theatre opened in 2002 and best known for its showing of independent and foreign films. It was one of many single-screen theaters that was still open in the present day.
Allen Kohl had previously applied for the property to become a QSR, but was shut down by the Westwood Community Council, simply because there are already too many fast food restaurants in the surrounding area.
“It would have to be a sit-down restaurant, but it can also be a retail,” Sann told Canyon News.
When Canyon News asked Sann if it will impact traffic in Westwood, he replied: “It shouldn’t have a significant impact unless it becomes a well-known chain restaurant.”
The KFO has filed an application to subdivide the space into two equal sides, in addition to removing the sloped flooring. The plan is to restore its original 1940 facade and make two sit-down restaurants.
Nadel Architects was recently named as the architectural firm that will be working on the site. On Wednesday, March 15, they will present their designs to the Westwood Village Design Review Board.
