Nearly a year after the Denton City Council committed up to $1.6 million to an economic development agreement aimed at restoring the historic Fine Arts Theater of Denton, construction and cleanup efforts are officially in motion. This redevelopment marks a significant step in preserving the city’s cultural heritage while introducing a modern multiuse entertainment space.

Similar in concept to the Texas Theatre in Dallas’ Oak Cliff, the renovated Fine Arts Theatre will serve as a versatile venue for live performances, movies, special festivals, concerts, and private rentals. The 9,900-square-foot landmark, which has been a part of Denton’s downtown landscape since 1877, originally opened as an opera house before evolving into a Texas movie theater in 1935 and later adopting its Fine Arts Theatre identity in 1957.

The long-anticipated renovation project has now moved from the planning phase to tangible progress. Jason Reimer, creative director and partner with the Texas Theatre, confirmed the development in a newsletter sent Thursday, emphasizing the project’s commitment to bringing the historic space back to life.

“At this time the building plans that we’ve worked on are beginning to set in motion actual construction, so first off we want to dispel the perhaps earned cynicism that this project ‘won’t happen,’” Reimer wrote. “It is happening. It’s going to be built. It’s going to open and there will be countless fantastic things that occur here. We hope you’re going to love it.”

Reimer indicated that an official groundbreaking ceremony, set for early April, will allow the public to view the plans and engage with the project firsthand.

A Nod to the Past with a Vision for the Future

Reimer also highlighted how the building’s historical milestones—1877, 1935, and 1957—serve as key points of inspiration for the theater’s aesthetic and creative direction.

“They also plan to use the downstairs of the theater as a live music venue as needed for bigger shows—something different from the Texas Theatre,” he explained, hinting at a unique offering that will set the Denton location apart from its Dallas counterpart.

“That is a bombshell change,” Reimer said.

Investment and Development Journey

The Fine Arts Theatre was originally purchased in 2018 for approximately $769,000 by investors from local Axis Realty and the team behind the Texas Theatre. Since then, the project has seen an estimated $2.2 million in predevelopment efforts, which included interior demolition, remediation, securing permits, and formulating renovation plans.

At an April 2 City Council meeting, city staff detailed the financial scope of the redevelopment. While the developers, led by Alex Payne of Axis Realty and Brad Andrus, initially approached the project with uncertainty regarding total costs, they have since worked toward a model that balances private investment with public support.

In January 2020, Payne told the Denton Record-Chronicle, “We had gone into the project pretty blind in respect to what it would cost.” However, he expressed optimism about forging a public-private partnership to see the restoration through.

“But we’re hopeful now that it’s all figured out that there could be a public-private partnership that could be put together to see the theater restored and reopened in its original form,” Payne said at the time. “It can only handle so much cost from the private sector, so we want people to understand where we are and how to move forward.”

Four years later, developers returned to the council with a request for a $2 million public investment. The council ultimately approved a $1.6 million grant through the city’s tax increment reinvestment zone (TIRZ) fund, placing specific conditions on the funds to ensure the project's viability. These conditions include a minimum investment of $5.8 million from non-city sources (excluding predevelopment costs) and the securing of tax credits approved by the National Park Service and the Texas Historical Commission.

A Theater for the Community, by the Community

In his email newsletter, Reimer emphasized that historic theaters like the Fine Arts Theatre hold deep cultural significance for their communities. To ensure the venue remains connected to Denton’s identity, Reimer and his team are working to establish a locally based operating company.

Reimer is collaborating with Barak Epstein, his partner at the Texas Theatre and CEO of Aviation Cinemas, to bring this vision to life. The duo, both alumni of the University of North Texas, have worked together on reviving the Dallas-based Texas Theatre and are now committed to bringing the same energy and passion to Denton.

“But to be clear, it will be a Denton theater,” Reimer wrote. “For the community of Denton run by people that live there. We’ve seen firsthand what can happen when a community embraces a building and lets it do what it was built to do, so it’s most important that you—the fan and theater patron—feel your own ownership of this space.”

As the project moves forward, Denton residents can look forward to a space that honors the past while embracing the future, with a grand reopening targeted for April 2026.