The building constructed for the Auditorium Theater and the Santa Ana Athletic Club is significant for its architectural style and its use as Santa Ana's earliest extant theater building. The building contains the county's oldest continuous theater business predating the West End and West Coast Theaters by two and ten years respectively. The building was constructed in a prominent classical revival commercial style that is unrepresented by historically intact examples in downtown Santa Ana.

This symmetrical, double pedimented architectural composition was designed by noted architect Fred Eley, whose civic and cultural buildings were evidenced by the classical United Presbyterian Church, the Spanish Revival YMCA building, and Spanish influenced Ebell Clubhouse, all of Santa Ana.

The commercial Classical Revival style is evidenced by one other extant structure, the Orange County Savings and Trust building, which was compromised in 1949 by radical removal of the lower half of the structure. The Yost-Ritz building as it is commonly known remains intact with only minor cosmetic and seismic changes. A c 1935 Moderne-styled marquee was added to the Theater half of the building.

The Yost-Ritz building is significant for its entertainment use in Orange County. The Auditorium theater opened in 1913 and soon thereafter became the Clunes theater. In 1919 Ed Yost purchased the building and a new larger stage and flyloft. The Yost Theater was known county wide for its first run films, Broadway productions and top acts from the Pantages and Orpheum circuits. Yost was a prominent Santa Ana business man and owned the West End Theater.

In 1952, the Yost began showing Spanish language movies and occasional live performances. The theater was the first theater to show Spanish language movies in Orange County and has continued in that use for 33 years.

The Santa Ana Athletic Club and Bath House opened in 1913 with a pool on the first floor and a gymnasium upstairs. The venture was backed and organized by Elton E Remsberg the brother-in-law of President Warren G Harding. Remsberg, a local machinery manufacturer was joined by C D Ball, the president of the Orange County Title Company, Director of the First National Bank and two-term state assemblyman.

The venture was intended to provide a first rate athletic and swimming facility but was unsuccessful after the untimely death of a local swimmer. The club closed in 1919 and was converted to hotel and retail use in the 1920's and early 1930's. The gymnasium area was converted to hotel rooms and the pool was planked over in the 1920's. - NRHP, June 1980