Atlanta's Fox Theatre has quietly transformed one of its signature hospitality spaces, converting a semi-covered arcade terrace inside the Marquee Club into a climate-controlled lounge that guests can now use no matter the season. The new Arcade Lounge gives the historic Midtown venue additional flexibility and comfort by turning what was once an open-air gathering spot into year-round indoor space.
The change was reported by WSB-TV, which noted the Arcade Lounge is one of several projects the Fox Theatre has undertaken in recent years to enhance the landmark. Fox Theatre chief operating officer Rachel Bomeli said the lounge reflects the venue's commitment to continually reinvesting in the guest experience. The theatre, located in Atlanta, already offers hospitality areas including the Conservatory and an open-air rooftop overlooking Peachtree Street, according to the station's report.
The Arcade Terrace sat inside the Marquee Club Presented by Lexus, the $10 million, 10,000-square-foot expansion the Fox Theatre opened in May 2018. That project, the largest revitalization in the venue's history since it opened in 1929, was designed in collaboration with preservation architecture firm Lord Aeck Sargent and gave the public rooftop access for the first time in nearly 50 years, according to Fox Theatre.
How the Enclosure Cleared Historic Preservation Review
Because the Fox Theatre carries National Historic Landmark status, any physical changes to the building require municipal oversight before construction can begin. In September 2025, theatre officials submitted plans to Atlanta's Urban Design Commission to enclose the upper Arcade Terrace without altering the landmark's historic facade, as reported by Urbanize Atlanta. The design called for two discreetly placed rooftop mechanical units and materials matching the venue's 2018 expansion, according to the same outlet.
That review process exists because of the Fox Theatre's layered preservation status. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1974, named a U.S. National Historic Landmark in May 1976, and designated an official Atlanta Landmark Building in October 1989, per Wikipedia. Those designations require preservation oversight and commission approval before any exterior or structural modifications can proceed.
A Landmark With Deep Roots and a Near-Demolition Past
The Fox Theatre's own origin story stretches back to the late 1920s, when it was commissioned as a Moorish-style temple for the Yaarab Shrine Temple before being leased to film mogul William Fox. It opened on Christmas Day in 1929 with a sold-out showing of Disney's Steamboat Willie, according to CityDays, which notes architect Olivier Vinour drew on Middle Eastern Revival design elements modeled after Spain's Alhambra and Egypt's Temple of Karnak.
The building nearly didn't survive to see any of its later expansions. In June 2025, the theatre commemorated the 50th anniversary of the 1975 grassroots Save the Fox campaign, which stopped Southern Bell from demolishing the building to build an office skyscraper, as detailed by Rough Draft Atlanta. That preservation fight led to the creation of the nonprofit Atlanta Landmarks, now Fox Theatre Inc., which negotiated a complex land swap to spare the building.
One of the people central to that campaign, longtime board member Carolyn Lee Wills, died in January at age 89 after serving 38 years on the Atlanta Landmarks board. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that Wills organized high-profile celebrity galas during the Save the Fox campaign and helped launch the venue's grant-making arm.
Commercial Success Fuels Continued Investment
The upgrades come as the 4,665-seat venue continues to post strong numbers nationally. The Fox Theatre was named 2025 Theater of the Year by the International Entertainment Buyers Association and ranked top overall in ticket sales worldwide for venues of its size class, with the theatre grossing more than $5.3 million across 21 shows during a single one-month tracking period in autumn 2025, according to Pollstar News. The venue hosts between 200 and 300 live events annually, drawing more than 500,000 visitors a year for Broadway tours, concerts and private functions, per the Fox Theatre's own figures.
Through its philanthropic program Fox Gives, formerly the Fox Theatre Institute, the organization has distributed over $4.7 million in preservation grants to historic performance spaces across Georgia and the Southeast since 2008, including $500,000 in single-year grants awarded to eight historic Georgia venues in late 2025, according to WNEG.
Executives have pointed to a shifting local market as one reason for continued capital investment. The Fox Theatre now competes with newer venues across metro Atlanta, including the 3,600-capacity Coca-Cola Roxy, the 2,200-capacity Eastern, and a planned 5,300-seat Live Nation venue downtown set to open in 2027, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported. Venue executives noted that while those newer spaces offer similar seating capacities, continuous capital improvements help the Fox Theatre maintain its premium market position.
Hoodline has previously tracked Hamilton's arrival at the Fox, part of a Broadway lineup that continues to fill the historic house alongside the venue's expanding hospitality footprint.
