UPDATED: The historic Emery Theatre was once considered one of the three best concert halls in America. Now, the University of Cincinnati says the more than 100-year-old theater is "beyond repair" and is looking to sell the building that houses it.

The UC Board of Trustees voted unanimously Tuesday morning to allow the university to market and sell the building. The board gave Robert Ambach, UC senior vice president for administration and finance, the authority to sign off on a sale.

The Emery Center building, located near Jack Casino and Kroger headquarters, is marketed as a nearly 60-unit urban apartment complex that has retail space. Coffee Emporium is currently on the first floor of the building.

The theater, which was once home to Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra in the early 1900s, hasn't been used for performances in several years despite renovation efforts by local arts groups.

The apartments aren't turning a profit and the theater is "beyond repair," according to a memo from university officials to the trustees.

UC spokeswoman M.B. Reilly said the university isn't in the downtown apartment business and "the decision to sell revolves around the university's core mission of teaching, research and service."

The university has sent out a request for proposal created by CBRE Group Inc., a commercial real estate services and investment firm. The building was valued at about $4.8 million in 2017, according to the Hamilton County auditor's office.

The Emery Theater opened in 1911 and is named after Cincinnati philanthropist Mary Emery. She was the founder of the village of Mariemont and known as "Lady Bountiful" because she donated much of her fortune from her family's chemical business to charitable causes, according to Enquirer archives.

The university took ownership of the building in 1969 when the Ohio Mechanics Institute folded into UC, but the institute was closed in 1988.

In 2001, the university worked with a developer to convert the former classroom space into apartments. UC leased the building to Emery Center Apartments, which subleased the theater to the nonprofit Emery Center Corp.

UC has been trying to sell the building for years.

The theater is not listed on any registry of historic sites, although it is in the Over-the-Rhine historic district.

The Emery held the former Albee Theater's Wurlitzer organ after the Downtown movie palace was torn down. The Albee/Emery organ was removed from the Emery in 1999, then restored and placed into the Music Hall ballroom. The organ was removed and then reinstalled in the ballroom after Music Hall's 2016-17 renovation.