OPENING ACT
Aztec Theatre sets the scene on swanky terrace bar
The Aztec Theatre Terrace Bar will open July 14.
This summer, it will be much easier to grab a drink before taking in a downtown show. According to a social media announcement, the hotly anticipated Aztec Theatre Terrace Bar will open to the public on July 14.
The space is part of an ambitious rework of the 1926 National Register of Historic Places site. The plans for the building were first announced in 2019 and included a separate rooftop event space rentable for private events.
The earliest schematics also converted the top four floors of the Aztec, largely vacant for four decades, into hotel or apartment space. At the time, reps for the ownership group said the team scrapped that idea in favor of utilizing the square footage for office space.
After an early 2020 pandemic pause, ownership group Aztec Family Group LLC, working with local firm Overland Partners and preservation specialists Seventh Generation Design, resuscitated that vision. In 2022, the developers and architects submitted plans to the Historic and Design Review Commission to renovate the space into a 77-room boutique hotel.
The opening of the terrace appears to be the first stage in making the previously private areas of the building into public space. It’s unclear, however, whether it will have regular hours. The Aztec only advertised the space being open 6-10 pm on July 14.
Eventually, however, the complex will incorporate a rooftop bar and restaurant — though details about the type of cuisine and drink program have remained scant. The most recent announcement stated that the phase would be completed by the end of summer 2023.
