The two-story building at 2433-43 N. Lincoln Ave. is in an upscale Lincoln Park neighborhood seeing much residential and commercial redevelopment, a factor that led the Commission on Chicago Landmarks to recommend the city council preserve one of the city's oldest movie theaters. The Biograph was one of at least four movie houses built in Chicago in the 1910s, but the only other remaining theater is the Village. Landmark status would restrict renovations to the property.

"The Biograph Theater is one of Chicago's first and most memorable movie houses for both its infamous crime history and as an entertainment center for Chicagoans for more than 85 years," says Commission on Chicago Landmarks Chairman David Mosena. "It is important to protect this building from growing development pressures of the neighborhood, and preserve this piece of Chicago history."

A recent retail property sale in Lincoln Park was at $140 per sf. Asking rents for retail space in the area range from $25 per sf to $31 per sf.

The Biograph was designed by architect Samuel N. Cowen, whose work can be seen in Downtown office buildings. The Lincoln Avenue façade is finished with red pressed brick and white-glazed terra cotta. A canopy marquee dating back before the famous shootout continues to hang over the sidewalk. The building also includes first-floor storefronts.