New life could be coming to a vacant downtown Wilmington lot that, for years, housed a movie theater and, later, several live music venues.

Joseph Hou, the long-time owner of 208 Market St., is proposing a three-story, mixed-use development for the site, which will include 14 two-bedroom apartments and approximately 1,000 square feet of commercial space. The site’s former building was demolished in 2023 due to structural issues.

The Wilmington Historic Preservation Commission unanimously approved the proposed design of the new project on Thursday night.
 
Rob Romero, the project’s architect and owner of Wilmington-based Romero Architecture, said the design pulls from elements of nearby buildings while still feeling modern. The property is bordered by Ponysaurus Brewing Co. to the east and Coglin's, a bar and nightclub, to the west.

“It’s always been an active, interesting piece of land,” Romero said, “so I felt the building should echo that.” 

Romero said he especially drew inspiration from the nearby First Bank building. The sleek, black building, located at the corner of Market and North Second streets, was built in 1959. 

Romero said he likes the black aesthetic and “pure” shapes of the proposed 208 Market St. project and feels it will “fit in nicely” with the surrounding neighborhood. The structure will take up much of the 0.14-acre lot and will include storefront windows on the first floor and second- and third-floor balconies on its eastern side. (A rendering showing the east side of the building is below at right.)

Hou, who owned Wilmington restaurant Szechuan 132 for decades before retiring, has owned the site since 1997, according to property records.

“We want to make sure that our building fits into that (historical downtown) … and at the same time, we want to have a little bit of that trendy look, that excitement we’re bringing to downtown,” Hou said. “When people walk downtown, they look at the building, (and say) ‘Wow.’”

A building was constructed on the property in 1920, and a movie theater, the Manor Theater, opened in 1941. After the theater closed in 1985, the building became a nightclub and live music venue, operating under various names, including Jacob’s Run, Ziggy’s By the Sea and The Blue Eyed Muse.

Over the years, Hou said he’s watched several live music venues come and go. After the building’s demolition, he decided to look at developing apartments on the site because of the nearly constant cycle of music venues. Each had a lifespan of about 18 to 24 months, he said, before he’d have to find a new tenant.

Although he’s been involved in local real estate for years, Hou said this is his first project building from the ground up and noted that he likes the challenge of doing something new.

The project went through a pre-technical review committee consultation with city officials last week, Romero said, and with approval from the Historic Preservation Commission, plans will now go before the city's technical review committee for a formal review.

The project’s timeline will depend on the timing of city approvals, but Hou said he expects the project to break ground in spring 2026. 

Hou said he’s proud to be a part of the ongoing investment in and evolution of the downtown area. He remembers a time in the 1970s and '80s when it was a challenge to attract businesses and people to downtown, and the Downtown Area Revitalization Effort, the precursor of today's Wilmington Downtown Inc., was formed to help encourage investment.

“From ‘nobody wants to go’ to a place 'I know I want to go check out,'” he said, “it’s exciting to be part of this journey.”