Actors’ Equity Association is putting its reserve money into Chicago. They’ve purchased a four-story building at 557 W. Randolph St. Yes, the New York based union has purchased a building in Chicago.
“To purchase a building in New York City at this time, certainly in Times Square, would be prohibitive,” said Kathryn Lamkey, Central Region executive director.
The Randolph St. building cost Equity $2 million, more than $1 million less than the owner was asking. “This was an opportunity we couldn’t refuse,” said Lamkey.
The Chicago building will eliminate the need to pay rent at Equity’s current location at 125 S. Clark. Equity will move its current operations to the top two floors, and they’ll rent out the bottom two, likely to arts-related organizations like the Actors Federal Credit Union.
Lamkey doesn’t rule out renting to a storefront theatre.
“I suppose it’s possible,” she said. “We’d have to look to see if there’s a conflict of interest.”
Equity will also have room to expand the members’ center and offer more audition space.
And Lamkey points to another reason for buying the building: branding.
“Whenever we have an event, it will be at the Equity Building, which we think is a good thing for the membership to have pride in.”
Some of the building will also likely be used for file storage and perhaps web servers that are currently housed in New York. Lamkey doesn’t know yet if the Central Region will be increasing staff.
The purchase of the building does, though, signify the importance of the Central Region, with many national tours using Chicago as a point of origin.
Equity closed on the Randolph building the first week of April, and is meeting with architects in the next month or so. Then they will renovate. Lamkey doesn’t see a possibility that the building will open in 2009, but she’s not sure when it will open in 2010.
