Changes in future for
Art Holiday building

By Diane Prokop
Times Staff Writer

A grand movie house called the Windsor opened in 1920 at 4204 Kensington Ave. to show silent films to Philadelphians longing for culture. In 1938, it was remodeled according to the designs of architect William H. Lee, and the theater was known to the locals in those days as the Ace.
Since the 1970s, most folks have known it as the Art Holiday, a porn house, its X-rated films supplanting anything having to do with culture or art.
In December, the theater owner was approached by a potential buyer interested in making the place a strip club, much to the community’s dismay. A church group also looked at the property.
But another buyer has tentatively agreed to purchase the closed theater. Frankford Associates LLC, which bought the First Federal Bank building in April, has other entertainment plans for the old theater, a two-story, 900-seat cinema that had the dubious honor of being the last vintage single-screen theater still operating in the city.
Although the sales price had been listed at $324,900 in December, Frankford Associates, a development group, has signed an agreement of sale for $250,000. The deal affords the firm an option to walk away should its research of prospective costs make the acquisition ill-advised. Frankford Associates will decide in August whether to move forward with the formal purchase.
"Really, this is a project that’s going to require quite a bit of research and planning before it reaches fruition," said Jim McCarthy, a partner in the development firm. "We’ve taken the first step but there are a lot more steps to be had."
With a desire to convert the site to an arts center, McCarthy and partners are evaluating the building while simultaneously crafting a plan for their new project.
"We intend to have it as a performance art space for theater, music, lectures, whatever comes about," McCarthy said.
The refurbished theater would make a perfect home for FrankfordStyle, a community non-profit organization that taught drama, art, music and dance to children and promoted arts and culture in the neighborhood. Joan Oliveto, the owner of mozaic, a restaurant in the neighborhood, announced last month that she plans to spearhead a revival of the organization after having been asked by FrankfordStyle founder Martha Kearns to take over its leadership.
The cultural organization has been inactive in recent years.
McCarthy said that a possible headquarters for FrankfordStyle has been discussed, but that has been the extent of it at this stage of the acquisition process.
As to a timeline for his development project, McCarthy said that a year is optimistic, depending on the source and swift approvals of construction money.
"It’s going to be expensive," he said.
But it’s also likely that residents would support a return to the site’s early grandeur. Debbie Klak, president of the Historical Society of Frankford, says the location also marks the spot where the first July 4 celebrations took place in the country, and also where Thomas Jefferson supposedly reviewed the Declaration of Independence before its formal presentation in Philadelphia.
City Councilman Dan Savage (D-7th dist.), whose district includes a large part of Frankford’s business corridor, backs McCarthy’s plans and would help guide the project through the usual process of governmental approvals.
"This is a great opportunity for Frankford," Savage said. "The location of the Art Holiday is not only the entrance to Frankford but it’s the gateway to the Northeast." ••
Reporter Diane Prokop can be reached at 215-354-3036 or dprokop@phillynews.com