counter expanded. Closure On 26 November 1987 it was closed after its final screening of Date with an Angel, a romantic comedy film. In 2006, the city-owned CentreVenture Development Corporation sold the theatre to Canad Inns for $100,000, which intended to convert the building for use as a museum devoted to rock and roll, a venture that also involved several prominent business leaders in the city, including Leonard Asper. The theatre was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1991. It is one of four surviving theatres built by the Allen brothers in Canada, and one of three surviving Canadian buildings designed by Crane. Renovation Vacant for 25 years from its closure in 1987, the theatre was renovated "to its original incarnation as the Allen Theatre" by Canad Inns. The renovation began in 2011, with $17 million of the funding provided by Canad Inns, $1.5 million by the municipal government of Winnipeg as a heritage grant from the Heritage Investment Reserve Fund, and $1.5 million from the provincial Government of Manitoba. The provincial grant was contingent on the building being available for use by nonprofit organizations 30 days per year. The city grant required completion of the renovations by 2013. The theatre became a central component of a new entertainment and hospitality district planned by a city agency for the redevelopment of an 11-block area of downtown Winnipeg. Despite interior water damage sustained since its closure, the "interior [was] in remarkably good condition". The renovation included construction of a structure on the south side of the building for a new kitchen, bathrooms, and elevators. The original sloped floors were replaced by tiered platforms, and heritage elements such as the front facade, main entrance, mezzanine, and mouldings were preserved, Heritage elements that had been destroyed or damaged by previous renovations were reconstructed. Other work included removal of a false canopy, brick repointing, installation of new windows and interior back-lighting. The building was reopened to the public on 30 November 2012 at an invitation-only unveiling. Structure The building was situated on a block on the east side of Donald Street south of Portage Avenue, which the Allen brothers had created from the purchase of smaller lots including a billiard hall, a florist, a tailor, and a Chinese merchant. It faced the Eaton's store, a mammoth eight-story structure owned by the largest employer in the city. The auditorium had a capacity of