Sunshine Building

The Sunshine Building is a historic six-story commercial and entertainment building at the southeast corner of Second Street and Central Avenue in downtown Albuquerque, New Mexico. Constructed in 1923–24 for local theater owner and property developer Joseph Barnett, it was designed by the El Paso architectural firm Trost & Trost in a Renaissance Revival style. The reinforced-concrete structure is faced with marble at street level and yellow brick on its upper stories, with decorative brickwork, pilasters, medallions, swags, a heavy cornice, and a balustraded parapet. Its design and scale made it one of Albuquerque’s most prominent early twentieth-century commercial buildings. The building was developed around the Sunshine Theater, which opened on May 1, 1924, with a screening of Ramón Novarro’s film Scaramouche. With approximately 1,200 seats, central heating and cooling, fireproof construction, and facilities for both cinema and live performance, the theater was promoted as one of the Southwest’s most modern movie palaces. The building also provided five floors of offices, originally containing 73 office rooms, along with five ground-floor commercial spaces. The theater could accommodate traveling vaudeville productions as well as motion pictures, reflecting the mixed entertainment programs common during the 1920s. Barnett had arrived in Albuquerque in 1896 and built a substantial local theater and property business. In 1935, his theater interests were combined with those of the Bachechi family, bringing the Sunshine and several other Albuquerque theaters into a consolidated exhibition operation. By 1952, Albuquerque Exhibitors controlled ten local theaters and employed approximately 170 people. The Sunshine was later leased to Frontier Theaters in 1956; Frontier was acquired by Commonwealth Theaters in 1967. Commonwealth did not renew the Sunshine lease when it expired in 1974, citing declining attendance. The venue subsequently moved away from first-run films and showed older movies, followed later by Spanish-language programming. It continued operating primarily as a movie theater until the 1980s. The building faced a major preservation threat in the early 1980s, when developers proposed demolishing it for a large Festival Marketplace project. Supporters argued that the project could revive a largely vacant downtown area, while preservationists formed a “Save the Sunshine” effort to prevent demolition. The proposed development was ultimately abandoned, allowing the building to survive. The Sunshine Building was added to the New Mexico State Register of Cultural Properties in 1985 and is also recognized as an Albuquerque City Landmark. In 1990, the Sunshine Theater was converted from a cinema into a live music venue. Soundgarden was among the first acts to perform after the conversion, appearing on February 14, 1990. Since then, the theater has become a leading mid-sized concert venue in the Albuquerque metropolitan area, presenting touring acts across rock, metal, hip-hop, electronic, reggae, and alternative music. Its current configuration uses an open floor and a large balcony, with much of the original theater seating removed to support standing concerts. The venue accommodates roughly 1,000 people, although exact capacity can vary by configuration. The building remains notable for the relationship between its historic architecture and its changing commercial use. Its theater occupies a central portion of the structure, while office and commercial areas wrap around it. The venue has hosted artists including The Strokes, Snoop Dogg, Soulfly, Deltron 3030, Stone Temple Pilots, The Smashing Pumpkins, Queens of the Stone Age, The Dead Weather, Arctic Monkeys, Modest Mouse, Rancid, Coheed and Cambria, Deftones, Melanie Martinez, Damian Marley, and Deadmau5. The exterior was also used as a filming location for the television series In Plain Sight, where it represented the fictional office of the United States Marshals S…

The Sunshine Building was developed by Joseph Barnett, an Italian-American businessman who came to Albuquerque in 1896 and eventually became a major local theater owner and property holder. Before undertaking the project, Barnett operated the B Theater and the Lyric Theater. He planned the Sunshine Building as a larger downtown property containing a substantial movie theater and multiple floors of offices. The site had previously held the White Elephant building, a two-story adobe structure dating from 1881 that had been associated with gambling and saloon activity. Construction took place in 1923–24. The building was designed by Trost & Trost of El Paso, a firm responsible for several important structures in the surrounding downtown area. Its reinforced-concrete frame, marble base, yellow-brick elevations, and Renaissance Revival ornamentation gave it a durable and formal appearance. The completed structure rose six stories and included the theater, five floors of offices, and ground-level commercial premises. A separate office entrance opened onto Second Street, while the theater occupied the central portion of the building. The Sunshine Theater began operation on May 1, 1924, showing Scaramouche, starring Ramón Novarro. The theater had about 1,200 seats divided between an orchestra level and balcony. It was equipped for both films and live entertainment, including vaudeville, and was advertised as a highly modern theater for the Southwest. Central heating and cooling, fire-resistant construction, and a large stage supported its role as both a cinema and performance venue. Barnett’s theater interests were combined with those of the Bachechi family in 1935. This consolidation created a dominant local theater operation that included the Sunshine and the KiMo Theater. By 1952, the resulting Albuquerque Exhibitors organization controlled ten theaters and employed approximately 170 people. In 1956, the theaters were leased to Frontier Theaters, a Texas-based chain, which was later acquired by Commonwealth Theaters in 1967. Commonwealth declined to renew its lease on the Sunshine when the original lease ended in 1974, attributing the decision to declining customer demand. The venue stopped showing first-run films and later presented older Hollywood movies and Spanish-language films. It remained primarily a cinema through the 1980s, while the surrounding building continued to serve office and commercial tenants. One of the longest-running tenants was F. D. Fogg and Company, an Albuquerque jewelry business that occupied space from 1948 to 1985. The building’s future became uncertain in 1983, when a large Festival Marketplace development was proposed for downtown Albuquerque. The plan called for demolition of the Sunshine Building as part of a 12-acre redevelopment intended to revitalize a mostly vacant area around First Street and Central Avenue. Preservationists opposed the proposal and formed a “Save the Sunshine” committee. The controversy received national preservation attention, but the marketplace project was eventually abandoned. The successful preservation effort was followed by formal recognition. The Sunshine Building was placed on the New Mexico State Register of Cultural Properties in 1985 and is also designated an Albuquerque City Landmark. Its survival allowed the property to retain both its historic exterior and its theater interior, although the latter later underwent a major change of use. In 1990, the Sunshine Theater was remodeled as a live music venue. Soundgarden performed there on February 14 of that year and was one of the earliest notable acts associated with the new format. Much of the original seating was removed, creating an open concert floor while retaining the balcony and major elements of the historic theater volume. The venue developed into a prominent Albuquerque stop for touring artists, generally serving acts too large for small clubs but not requiring a large arena. The Sunshine Theater has since presented a broad range of performers, including alternative and indie rock, metal, punk, hip-hop, electronic, reggae, and mainstream touring artists. Examples include The Strokes, Snoop Dogg, Soulfly, Deltron 3030, Stone Temple Pilots, The Smashing Pumpkins, Queens of the Stone Age, Arctic Monkeys, Modest Mouse, Rancid, Deftones, Nightwish, Melanie Martinez, Damian Marley, and Deadmau5. The building has also appeared on television: its exterior was used in In Plain Sight as the fictional office of the United States Marshals Service Witness Protection Program. Architecturally, the building remains a six-story, approximately 85-foot-tall structure with a footprint of about 75 by 140 feet. Decorative brickwork, pilasters, a cornice, parapet, swags, and medallions distinguish the exterior. It was built with blank side walls intended to abut neighboring structures; later downtown construction obscured those walls. The property was also known for what was believed to be New Mexico’s last manually operated elevator, which still required an elevator operator into at least 1989. As of the latest supplied reference material, the building remains active as a mixed-use historic property and the Sunshine Theater continues to operate as a live music venue.

1. 2023Soulfly receives a city key at the venue

   Mayor Tim Keller presented Soulfly with a key to Albuquerque at the Sunshine Theater on January 28.

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2. 2001Adjacent downtown theater building is completed

   Construction of the Century Theatres Downtown building next to the Sunshine obscured the historic building’s previously exposed blank side walls.

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3. 1990Theater becomes a live music venue

   The Sunshine Theater was converted from a movie house into a concert venue, with Soundgarden among the early performers.

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4. 1985Listed as a state cultural property

   The Sunshine Building was listed on the New Mexico State Register of Cultural Properties and is also recognized as an Albuquerque City Landmark.

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5. 1983Demolition threat prompts preservation campaign

   A proposed Festival Marketplace redevelopment placed the building at risk, prompting preservationists to organize the Save the Sunshine campaign.

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6. 1974First-run film operation ends

   Commonwealth did not renew its lease, citing insufficient customer demand. The theater stopped showing first-run films and later shifted to repertory and Spanish-language programming.

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7. 1967Frontier Theaters is acquired by Commonwealth

   Commonwealth Theaters took over Frontier Theaters and later operated the Sunshine under the existing lease arrangement.

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8. 1956Theaters leased to Frontier Theaters

   The local theater group leased its theaters, including the Sunshine, to the Texas-based Frontier Theaters chain.

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9. 1952Local theater network reaches ten venues

   Albuquerque Exhibitors, the consolidated theater business, controlled ten local theaters and employed approximately 170 people.

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10. 1935Barnett and Bachechi theater interests combine

    The Sunshine became part of a consolidated Albuquerque theater operation associated with the Barnett and Bachechi families.

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11. 1924Sunshine Theater opens

    The theater opened on May 1 with Scaramouche and offered approximately 1,200 seats, modern building services, cinema, and live-performance facilities.

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12. 1923Construction begins

    Joseph Barnett began developing the six-story Sunshine Building on the former White Elephant site in downtown Albuquerque.

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A historic Albuquerque landmark combining preserved Renaissance Revival architecture, downtown commercial space, and a mid-sized live music venue.

• Sunshine Building commercial and office spaceCommercial real estate1924

  The building was designed as a mixed-use downtown property, with five floors of offices surrounding the theater and multiple ground-floor commercial spaces. Its office entrance is separate from the theater entrance and opens onto Second Street. Historic tenants included F. D. Fogg and Company, a local jeweler that operated in the building from 1948 to 1985.

• Sunshine TheaterLive music and entertainment venue1924

  Originally a roughly 1,200-seat movie palace, the Sunshine Theater operated primarily as a cinema from 1924 through the 1980s before being converted to live music in 1990. Its concert configuration features an open floor, a large balcony, a bar, and a standing-room format that accommodates approximately 1,000 people depending on layout. The venue presents touring acts across multiple music genres.

• Sunshine Theater movie exhibitionCinema1924

  The theater opened with first-run motion pictures and was also equipped for vaudeville and other live performances. After first-run exhibition ended in the 1970s, it screened classic films from the 1930s and 1940s and later Spanish-language movies before its eventual conversion to a concert venue.

• 1983Save the Sunshine

  Albuquerque · United States

  Preservationists organized the Save the Sunshine campaign after a proposed 12-acre Festival Marketplace redevelopment called for demolition of the building. Supporters of the redevelopment viewed it as a possible downtown revitalization project, while preservation advocates emphasized the Sunshine’s architectural and cultural importance.

  Outcome. The Festival Marketplace proposal was abandoned, and the Sunshine Building survived. It later received state and city historic recognition.

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• 1990Conversion from movie theater to concert venueStrategy

  After the decline of its traditional cinema role, the historic theater was adapted for a different form of entertainment.

  What changed. The Sunshine Theater was remodeled as a live music venue, with much of the seating removed and an open concert floor created.

  Aftermath. The venue became one of Albuquerque’s best-known mid-sized concert spaces and continued hosting live music in the supplied reference period.

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• 1974Shift away from first-run cinemaStrategy

  Commonwealth Theaters chose not to renew the Sunshine lease when it expired, citing declining customer demand.

  What changed. The theater ended its first-run movie program and subsequently presented repertory films and Spanish-language movies.

  Aftermath. The venue remained primarily a cinema into the 1980s but no longer operated as a major first-run theater.

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• 2023Soulfly receives a key to Albuquerque at the Sunshine Theater

  Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller presented the band Soulfly with a key to the city at the Sunshine Theater on January 28, 2023.

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• 1990Sunshine Theater converts to live music

  The former movie theater was converted into a live music venue. Soundgarden was among the early performers following the conversion.

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• 1985Sunshine Building receives state historic recognition

  The building was listed on the New Mexico State Register of Cultural Properties after a period in which its survival was threatened by a proposed downtown redevelopment project.

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• 1924Sunshine Theater opens as a movie palace

  The Sunshine Theater opened inside the newly constructed Sunshine Building on May 1, 1924, with a screening of Scaramouche. The approximately 1,200-seat venue offered motion pictures, live-performance facilities, and modern building services.

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1. Sunshine Building