Downtown's former Century 14 up for sale after basketball plans don't land

A significant piece of Downtown property is on the market after plans for a local basketball-focused school to move to the spot fell through.

Plans for Albuquerque Basketball Club Prep, or ABC Prep, to relocate from Old Town to the Albuquerque Theater Block had been gaining traction last year, but a lack of funding ultimately pushed building owners to pivot. The property was put up for sale last week, listing for $14 million.

Jerry Mosher and Dale Armstrong acquired the roughly 90,000-square-foot property about three years ago. The block, which is situated between Second Street, First Street and Gold Avenue at 100 Central SW, has restaurants, retail and office spaces, and upper story offices, as well as floor plans for five basketball courts inside of a renovated Century 14 movie theater.

The listing touts the upper story offices as easily convertible to multi-family housing units or dormitories, making the idea of bringing in ABC Prep appealing to club founder Brandon Mason.

Local officials also supported the effort. Mayor Tim Keller and three city councilors were among those who attended a promotional event for the relocation plans last fall. After the event, the building owners intended to explore city, county and state funding options.

The fundraising needed to bring the relocation fully to fruition was about $16 million, “over several phases, over several years,” according to Mosher, but it would’ve taken “just a few million” to get the school in the building and operating.

Despite the local show of support, the funding ultimately fell short.

“We planned all the engineering. ... The plans were drawn up and everything. We just couldn’t get the funding,” Mosher told the Journal. “Something like that is so big, it needs help from the community.”

Mosher said he was excited about the idea of ABC Prep holding tournaments at the property, bringing in kids and families from out of town and having them pack the local hotels and restaurants in the area.

“It would have really changed the demographics of Downtown,” Mosher said.

Mason told Downtown Albuquerque News last week that ABC Prep will remain at its current location for the time being.

As for what’s next for the former movie theater, Mosher said the space, with 40-foot ceilings, could welcome anything from a grocery store to an athletic facility. The listing stated the property is also “well-suited” for the film industry or charter schools.

The latter has initiated the most recent activity, with two charter schools expressing interest in the space, according to Mosher. So far, the interested parties want to either use the space as an athletic facility for their schools or renovate the entire space into a charter school.

It’s too early to know what will pan out, Mosher said, but he is optimistic about the opportunity the property presents with the renovations.

“We’ve made a lot of improvement in the building. ... It’s a really big empty building — which, people go in there and can’t believe it’s in the middle of town, that big,” Mosher said. “We’ll see what comes up.”