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The buildings that house the Somerville Theatre and Capitol Theatre are each listed with an asking price of $12 million.
The buildings that house the Somerville Theatre and Capitol Theatre are each listed with an asking price of $12 million. (Nic Antaya for The Boston Globe)
July 13, 2026 | 1:40 PM
2 minutes to read
The buildings that house two of Greater Boston’s most beloved independent movie theaters, the Somerville Theatre in Davis Square and the Capitol Theatre in East Arlington, have been put up for sale, according to a listing from Coldwell Banker Realty.
The properties are being marketed as part of a three-building portfolio that also includes an apartment building at 36 College Avenue in Somerville for $16 million. The Somerville Theatre building, at 49-55 Davis Square, and the Capitol Theatre building, at 202-218 Massachusetts Avenue in Arlington, are each listed with an asking price of $12 million.
The Davis Square property spans roughly 47,566 square feet and includes the 900-seat Somerville Theatre, the 500-capacity Crystal Ballroom, a long-term restaurant tenant, and a recently renovated office suite, according to the listing, which describes the building as an “irreplaceable presence in one of Greater Boston’s most vibrant commercial districts.” The Arlington property is a three-story, mixed-use building with six commercial suites and 18 residential apartments, anchored by the Capitol Theatre.
Both buildings date to the 1910s and have been owned by the Fraiman family for decades.
The listing prompted a statement from the theaters’ operators, posted to the Somerville Theatre’s Facebook page on July 11. The post explained that CSB Theatres, Inc., which took over day-to-day operations of the Somerville Theatre, Capitol Theatre, and Crystal Ballroom in 2025, owns the businesses but not the buildings themselves.
CSB Theatres acknowledged the uncertainty a sale could bring but pointed to their long-term leases as a source of stability.
“While the uncertainty surrounding a sale is unnerving for everyone who treasures these places, and especially for those who rely on them for their livelihoods, we’re cautiously optimistic about the future,” a statement from CSB Theatres read. “With multi-year lease agreements in place, we are confident that little will change for us in the short term. That, coupled with our steadfast commitment to our communities of Somerville and Arlington, and their unwavering support of these local institutions, makes us hopeful for what comes next.”
Boston.com reached out to Carl Christie, the listing agent for the properties, and to Ian M. Judge, creative director and chief of operations at the Somerville Theatre, for comment. Christie did not respond in time for publication.
Judge, in an email to Boston.com, echoed the Facebook’ post that the sale involves the buildings, not the theaters themselves.
“The building is for sale, but not the business,” Judge wrote. “We are one of the tenants, we are not selling anything, the landlord is selling the building; we have many years remaining on our lease.”
CSB is currently in the second year of a five-year lease, with an option to renew for another five years after that, Judge said.
It remains unclear what a sale of the buildings could mean for the theaters’ future, including whether a new owner would keep the properties intact, given their historic designations, or how the push for denser development in Davis Square might factor into a sale.
Annie Jonas is a Community writer at Boston.com. She was previously a local editor at Patch and a freelancer at the Financial Times.
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