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Aspen Film tells council Isis Theatre could close in 2025 without deed‑restriction changes
Summary
Aspen Film board chair Catherine Chapin told council the nonprofit has run multi‑year losses supporting the Isis Theatre and is seeking deed‑restriction amendments to allow upstairs leasing, naming rights and other revenue measures to avert likely closure in 2025 and fund a needed renovation.
Aspen Film told the City Council on Jan. 27 that the Isis Theatre is operating at a sustained deficit and needs new revenue tools to survive.
"We are not asking for a handout. We are asking for tools to preserve our small town movie theater," board chair Catherine Chapin said, outlining that the organization has lost roughly $170,000 a year since acquiring the theater and presently is "on fumes." Chapin said Aspen Film purchased the building to stabilize its future, has covered HOA dues and property taxes, and faces a major renovation estimated at "approximately 10 to $15,000,000".
Chapin and executive director Susan Bridal asked council to consider amending sections 4.e and 7 of the existing deed restriction to allow Aspen Film to reconfigure the ground floor (a roughly 5,000‑square‑foot area) for retail or restaurant leases while keeping basement theaters in operation. The organization emphasized it would keep theaters in the basement and use upstairs leasing to create a sustainable cash flow to support programming and future capital work.
Aspen Film also raised naming rights as a likely fundraising mechanism but said it wants to preserve the historic ISIS signage and asked the council for guidance and flexibility. Legal counsel John Kinley and other Aspen Film representatives answered council questions about prior financing, the organization's pandemic costs and the operational burden of HOA dues.
