Former Topeka Regal Hollywood movie theater drops $1 million in appraisal value

TOPEKA ( KSNT ) – A former movie theater in Topeka which has lain dormant for over a year has dropped more than $1 million in appraisal value.

KSNT 27 News reached out to Shawnee County Appraiser Steve Bauman to learn why the property at 6200 SW Sixth Avenue has gone down so much in appraisal value recently. The theater closed in early 2023 with no reason given on the shutdown and no plans for future use of the building.

Shawnee County spokeswoman Amanda Monhollon responded to 27 News with a written statement on why the property dropped from $5,251,050 in 2023 to $4,102,600 in 2024. She cited several factors as having played a part in the appraisal value change.

“We appraise property every year with an effective date of January 1 ^st .  The appraised value is our estimate of what property should be able to sell for in an open and competitive market. We consider important factors that affect the market value when appraising properties. Things like location, size, quality and condition among other property characteristics.”

Shawnee County spokeswoman Amanda Monhollon

The movie theater’s property was decreased following an informal hearing. The owner of the property, Klaton Theatres Riverhill LLC, requested a valuation appeal on the property.

The property owner notified the county that much of the furniture, fixtures and equipment (FF&E) was removed before the theater was sold on March 15, 2023 by Regal Investments LLC. The final sale price is confidential information.

Monhollon said this had the impact of preventing the space from immediately being able to resume its function as a movie theater with significant costs needed now to reverse this situation. The appraisal value of the property was subsequently dropped to “reflect the inherent functional obsolescence” of the theater.

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