{"nrhp_refnum":"80000844","name":"Lee, Robert E., Hotel","other_names":["Commodore Hotel","Lyceum Theater"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"815 3rd Ave. and 314 F St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"San Diego","county":"San Diego County","state":"CA","lat":32.71384431400003,"lon":-117.16166732699998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1980-05-31","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Entertainment/Recreation","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A four-story reinforced concrete building at 815 Third Avenue and 314 F Street in downtown San Diego, combining a hotel and the Lyceum Theater. It was constructed in 1913 and designed by engineer Willis J. Dean.","why_significant":"The nomination argues it is the only known San Diego example of a \"theatrical hotel,\" a type more common in large eastern cities. It is the only known remaining work of engineer Willis J. Dean and the second oldest surviving theater in the city. It also contributed to the city's theatrical history, including the first Spanish-language dramatic theater in San Diego (1915).","narrative":"Built in 1913 at the corner of Third Avenue and F Street in downtown San Diego, this four-story concrete building combined the Robert E. Lee Hotel with the Lyceum Theater. Engineer Willis J. Dean designed it during the building boom before the 1915 Panama-California Exposition. The exterior follows an adapted Classic Revival style, with a bracketed cornice, belt course and ornamental spandrel panels. Inside, the 437-seat theater has a full stage and fly space, and the upper floors hold 94 hotel rooms. Its interior partitions of metal studs and plaster may have been the first of their kind in San Diego. The nomination describes it as the only known theatrical hotel built in the city and the oldest local theater built for dramatic productions. Over the years it hosted stock companies, vaudeville, Spanish-language drama and decades of burlesque. Most original fabric above the ground floor survives, though the storefronts have been altered. At the time of nomination, the city proposed to demolish it for a parking structure.","period_of_significance":"1900-","architect_builder":"Willis J. Dean, Engineer","architectural_style":"Adapted from Classic Revival","criteria":[],"status_note":"Described as in good condition and fully occupied in 1979; at the time of nomination it was threatened with condemnation and demolition by the city for a parking structure.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:31.479897-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/80000844.pdf"},"photo":null,"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123860909","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":null},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/san-diego-county/lee-robert-e-hotel-80000844/"}