A new $7.5 million plan to repurpose and reopen the Fox-Bay Theater, 334 E. Silver Spring Dr., in Whitefish Bay, has been announced by building owner New Land Enterprises and The Argo Group.
The principals of The Argo Group – founded in 2022 – appeared before the Whitefish Bay Village Board Tuesday evening to present a plan for the 988-seat theater – closed in 2020 – that would include a first-floor mid-sized concert, comedy and movie venue with a balcony that would book local and national acts; a bar and restaurant also on the main floor; and a private event space upstairs.
The theater space is expected to have a capacity of about 500 seated and 200 standing persons.
Argo said that the 18,398 -square-foot theater could open in late summer with plans to host roughly 100 events annually, with a staff of around 15.
The plan seeks $1 million in incentives from the village and $250,000 in Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC) Community Development Investment Grant funds.
The Village Board will discuss the project further at a Jan. 30 Community Development Authority meeting and also at a Feb. 10 Plan Commission meeting.
“Our goal is to create a space where the community can share memorable experiences and create new traditions,” said Sheldon Oppermann of New Land Enterprises, who noted that feedback from the Whitefish Bay community expressed a desire for “a modern gathering space.”
New Land said it had been searching for four years for a use for the moribund theater and The Argo Group – which includes Adam Powers (former GM of the resuscitated and now-closed Pabst Brewery Pilot House), Josh Bryant and Andrew Coate – had been seeking a home since its founding three years ago.
“This project is about much more than entertainment – it’s about fostering a space for creativity, celebration and community connection,” said Powers. “In addition, we are proud to contribute to local arts initiatives by donating $1 from every ticket sale to arts-focused nonprofits in the area.”
The Art Deco Fox-Bay Cinema (the name being a mashup of Fox Point and Whitefish Bay), was designed by architect Albert F. Keymar of Ebling, Plunkett & Keymar in 1949 and completed in 1951 as one of the first Deco theaters in the area, after the more muted 1936 Varsity Theater near the Marquette University campus.
In 1999 – after a prospective conversion into a Barnes & Noble bookstore never occurred – it was converted to a “cinema grill,” which served food and beverages to moviegoers.
New Land Enterprises bought the theater, which has a number of retail spaces in its building, in 2005.
The Fox-Bay, which had been split into a three-screen venue, closed due to the pandemic in March 2020. Although it reopened a couple months later, it shuttered again on Sept. 15, 2020.
In 2022, Pete’s Pops used the theater’s box office as a popsicle stand, and that same year, Whitefish Bay residents circulated a petition asking for a plan for the theater. A year later, New Land shared renderings for a multi-purpose events venue in the theater, but those did not come to pass.
Born in Brooklyn, N.Y., where he lived until he was 17, Bobby received his BA-Mass Communications from UWM in 1989 and has lived in Walker's Point, Bay View, Enderis Park, South Milwaukee and on the East Side.
He has published three non-fiction books in Italy – including one about an event in Milwaukee history, which was published in the U.S. in autumn 2010. Four more books, all about Milwaukee, have been published by The History Press.
With his most recent band, The Yell Leaders, Bobby released four LPs and had a songs featured in episodes of TV's "Party of Five" and "Dawson's Creek," and films in Japan, South America and the U.S. The Yell Leaders were named the best unsigned band in their region by VH-1 as part of its Rock Across America 1998 Tour. Most recently, the band contributed tracks to a UK vinyl/CD tribute to the Redskins and collaborated on a track with Italian novelist Enrico Remmert.
He's produced three installments of the "OMCD" series of local music compilations for OnMilwaukee.com and in 2007 produced a CD of Italian music and poetry.
In 2005, he was awarded the City of Asti's (Italy) Journalism Prize for his work focusing on that area. He has also won awards from the Milwaukee Press Club.
He has be heard on 88Nine Radio Milwaukee talking about his "Urban Spelunking" series of stories, in that station's most popular podcast.
