Lincoln Park may be one of the cleanest neighborhoods in the city, but as of today it’s lost a bit of its luster, with the closing of the 3 Penny Cinema. According to Cinema Treasures, the building opened as a nickelodeon in 1912 and was briefly converted to an automotive garage before reopening as the Crest Theatre in 1938. The movie house underwent a name change to “3 Penny Cinema” in 1964, though you can still see Crest spelled out in the tiles in front of the theater’s entrance. By all accounts, the theater was a bit shabby, but it seems almost every life-long Chicagoan has seen a movie here at one time or another.
An article in Crain’s Chicago Business explains that the theater is closing for failure to pay entertainment taxes for the past five years, to the tune of more than $100,000 according to the theater’s owner, Jim Burrows.
We’d like to suggest that Lincoln Park take a cue from Lincoln Square, where residents lobbied to save the discount Davis Theater from being replaced by a condo development. We’re not sure what’s in the works for this site, but condos are always a good bet these days. Does Lincoln Park need more condominiums or a cheap showing of “Nacho Libre” two months from now? With the recent closing of the second-run Village Theatre, 1548 N Clark St, the answer should be obvious to all.