The Civic Theatre opened in 1941 as a first-run movie house. It was one of a number of theaters that brought the glitz and glamour of downtown's movie palaces to the neighborhoods.

The east-side Civic could seat nearly 1,500 people in its auditorium. It was designed by architect Kenneth S. Frazier in the Streamlined Moderne style. Frazier also designed the Carmen Theatre in Dearborn, Michigan, which opened the same year.

As Detroit began to lose population and theaters in the city began to close as more moviegoers opted for newer venues in the suburbs, the Civic was bought by Eric and Erv Steiner around 1980 and turned into a triplex. Their efforts didn't turn around the Civic's fortunes, and the theater closed in 1984.

After its silver screen fell dark, the building was used as a furniture warehouse.

The building was acquired by infamous Detroit land speculator Dennis Kefallinos and became the target of City blight enforcement. In the spring of 2024, Kefallinos lost the theater to foreclosure. Just six months later, Dionysia Kefallinos, his daughter, bought the theater back in the Wayne County tax auction, and it returned to his control but free of tax debt.

Following an agreement with the City, Kefallinos began clearing out the building and securing it. Nothing from its glory days remains. It is hoped that, with the Houston-Whittier neighborhood joining the City's Strategic Neighborhood Fund program, the commercial corridor will see new businesses and development that may lead to new life for this sadly neglected theater.

More on this building coming soon.