Foreclosure auction for historic Bethesda Theatre fails to attract bids
| BETHESDA, Md.
The landmark Bethesda Theatre could be on its last run.
The live-performance venue on Wisconsin Avenue failed to attract any outside bids at a foreclosure auction on Tuesday and was bought back by BB&T Bank for $2 million.
According to the terms of the auction, the 700-seat property must "be used for cinema or performing arts use." The bank and the theater's owner, the Bethesda Cultural Alliance, will decide what to do next.
The theater opened as an art deco movie house in 1938. In 2007, it underwent a $12 million renovation.
The theater was put on the auction block after its owners defaulted on their mortgage when the economy soured.
