 The Chicago Theatre Preservation Group commenced renovation of the buildings which were completed in 1986 at a cost of $ 9 million ($ 19.4 million), with $ 4.3 million ($ 9.3 million) spent on the Theatre. The renovation by architects Daniel P. Coffey & Associates, Ltd. and interior design consultants A.T. Heinsbergen & Co. restored the Chicago Theatre to a 1930s appearance and a seating capacity of 3,600. The theatre reopened September 10, 1986, with a performance by Frank Sinatra marking the culmination of a four-year historic preservation effort championed by the Landmarks Preservation Council of Illinois, The gala reopening was also symbolic because Sinatra had performed at the theater in the 1950s. The restoration of the adjoining Page Building, itself a Chicago and National Register landmark, provided office space to support the theatre. The theater, like its neighbor the Joffrey Tower, is an important component of the North Loop / Theatre District revitalization plan. Theatre district revitalization plans go back as far as Mayor Jane Byrne's 1981 plan.
