Historic Saint John, N.B., dinner theatre up for sale

The Phoenix Dinner Theatre in Saint John is up for sale.

Another historic uptown Saint John, N.B., property has hit the market.

The Phoenix Dinner Theatre, located near the end of Exmouth Street, is once again for sale. The historic space has been on the market in previous years, but efforts to find a buyer were unsuccessful.

The latest realtors to try their hand at finding a new owner for the 178-year-old building is the father-daughter combo of Tim Somerville and Brittany Cramm of Royal LePage Atlantic.

“I think that what we believe is the vision,” Somervile says of the space, which he notes will need some touch-ups. “It’s one thing to sell it, but we can’t wait to see what somebody does with it.”

The theatre was first built in 1848. It initially hosted a methodist and later a Pentecostal church.

It survived the great Saint John fire of 1877, a pair of internal fires in 1960 and 1980, and was almost torn down for a parking lot in 2001. It was bought by Gary John and David Mills, who named the building the Phoenix, based off the mythical bird that rises from its own ashes.

In 2004, the Phoenix Dinner Theatre opened. Over its two-plus decades, the venue has seen more than 100,000 guest come through the doors.

Amy Stevens has owned the Phoenix since 2017. While she declined an interview, she told CTV Atlantic it has been a pleasure operating the space but now is the time for someone new to take over the approximately 10,600 square footage worth of space.

Somervile points out there are very few places in Canada listed under $600,000 that offer more than 10,000 square feet worth of space.

The theatre itself consists of three levels and can welcome up to 800 guests. Both the main and second floors boast a kitchen performance stage and large area for arranged seating. The third floor offers a balcony view of entertainment on the second floor.

Also built into the second floor is an original Casavant Frères pipe organ that Cramm says is worth around $10,000.

“It was brought here in 1912 and definitely holds a huge part of this building,” says Cramm, adding that the organ and all artifacts inside the theatre are included in the sale. “This one is actually 496 out of 500 made in Quebec, and is definitely a piece of history.”

In the past Somervile says non-profit organizations have expressed interest in the space, but the price has often been too high.

“It’s a multi-purpose property that can be used for so many uses,” Somerville says. “The amount of parking that it has is fantastic, and I believe there’s going to be a regentrification in the area that will help the value of this, especially in the years to come.”

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