Atlanta’s iconic Plaza Theatre, Majestic Diner sold for $18M

Longtime Atlanta cinephiles, Rocky Horror Picture Show enthusiasts, and lovers of breakfast all day can relax: Plaza Theatre and Majestic Diner, two institutions at Briarcliff Plaza, aren’t going anywhere. Not anytime soon.

Social media was abuzz this week after the Atlanta Business Chronicle reported the shopping center—a fixture on Ponce De Leon Avenue since 1939—had been sold for more than $18 million.

According to multiple statements on behalf of the theater via their Facebook page, the venue has a longterm lease and is optimistic about the future.

Opened in 1939, the theater is the longest continually operating movie house in Atlanta and is known for its weekly screenings of the cult classic Rocky Horror Picture Show.

Asana, the investment firm that purchased the property, also indicated they had no plans to demolish any of the existing structures.

Still, the concern wasn’t without reason.

Many changes have happened in the area in the last few years, as a large portion of the Druid Hills Baptist Church was demolished to make way for a mixed-use development, and the parking lots of Manuel’s Tavern are being transformed into residences.

Briarcliff Plaza was the first shopping center in the city to be built with a parking lot designed for shoppers, according to History Atlanta. So the one-story center and large parking lot could be seen as tantalizing bait for developers pumping density into the area.

But it seems, for now, the future is as bright as the neon signs on the Art Deco complex.

• Atlanta landmarks Plaza Theatre, Majestic Diner, sold for $18 million [Atlanta Business Chronicle]
• The Plaza Theatre & Briarcliff Plaza [History Atlanta]