Fox Tucson Theatre clears big hurdle in expansion plans

Date: 01-04-2023

Fox Theatre Foundation this week took a major leap forward with plans to expand the historic Fox Tucson Theatre to include more lobby space and room for events, dining and entertainment.

The foundation in late December closed purchase deals on several adjacent properties on North Stone Avenue that will add 20,000 square feet to the Fox; the theater’s actual footprint, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, will remain intact.

The foundation acquired the theater and the adjacent Arizona Star Building from Rio Nuevo for $100 and spent $2.74 million to buy 1 W. Congress St., which was home until last spring of Bruegger’s Bagels, and four other mostly empty storefronts along North Stone Avenue to the Bank of America Building at 33 N. Stone, near East Pennington Street. The only occupied space at 27 N. Stone is home to Rae’s Place Downtown Market, whose lease expires in May. The other spaces at 13, 17 and 25 N. Stone, which housed a cookie café, distilling testing room and Southwest boutique, have been mostly vacant for several years.