posted 08-07-2004 09:58 AM                    

quote: Brandon Willis

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We had a comment card get sent to my theatre by mistake that said "We hate to see the Venetian 6 close, and we hope you will relocate in Venice soon."

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No wonder they're closing.... the comment cards don't even make it to the right place!!

posted 08-08-2004 02:19 PM                       

quote:

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MOVIES
Parmatown Cinemas will close in August
Saturday, July 31, 2004
John Petkovic
Plain Dealer Reporter

The end.

After 37 years and thousands of movies, the action is coming to a close at Parmatown Cinemas.

The five-screen theater, one of the longest-running in the area, will show its last movie on Aug. 12.

It will be replaced by a Dick's Sporting Goods, which is scheduled to open in fall 2005.

"The theater was doing well, especially of late," says Jon Forman of Cleveland Cinemas, which managed the theater since July 2002. "Mall management just made the decision to bring in Dick's Sporting Goods."

Pittsburgh-based Dick's operates more than 150 stores in the eastern half of the United States, including five in the area.

"We had been looking to replace the theater with a big box' retailer," says Chris Monaco of RMS Investment Corp., which owns and operates the mall. "It's extremely hard for an old five-screen theater to compete with these new multiplexes out there."

Twelve-plus screen theaters have become the norm over the last decade, and mall theaters have seen a steady decline. There are three multiplexes within a 15-minute drive of Parmatown.

"Mall operators prefer to use space for retail, which commands more money," says Forman. "These days, theaters tend to be close but not actually a part of a mall."

Still, Cleveland Cinemas managed to reinvigorate Parmatown Cinemas after a disastrous run as Cinema Grill. The local chain not only jettisoned Cinema Grill's dinner-theater approach, it instituted senior specials and Monday discount nights that bolstered attendance.

"Parma is a very loyal film-going market," says Forman. "People have been living there for, say, 25 years and they're willing to support their local theater."

Forman will return the favor by offering free popcorn and drinks Aug. 9-12. And he isn't excluding the possibility of returning to Parma. "We had long conversations with RMS about relocating the theater," says Forman. "Right now, it's a question mark. But there's no doubt that Parma would support another one."

To reach this Plain Dealer reporter:

jpetkovic@plaind.com, 216-999-4556

© 2004 The Plain Dealer.

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posted 08-24-2004 08:21 AM                       

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12-screen theater coming to Parma Hts. next year
Monday, August 23, 2004
Fran Henry
Plain Dealer Reporter

Take heart, West Side film buffs. Although the five-screen Parmatown Cinemas at Parmatown Mall closed Aug. 12, a 12-screen theater is scheduled to open in late spring or early summer of 2005.

The Variety, a 35,000-square-
foot theater, will be at West 130th Street and Pearl Road in Parma Heights, site of the 34-acre Cornerstone, a $90 million entertainment and residential complex in development by Schneider Management.

Cleveland Cinemas' Jonathan Forman, who ran Parmatown Cinemas the last two years of its 37-year history, will operate the new theater.

"There will be a new theater with all the whistles and bells of a state-of-the-art theater," Forman said.

The Variety will have stadium seating, with ramps to make sections fully handicapped-accessible, and digital sound. Some theaters will be equipped to show digital film.

The Parmatown Cinemas was closed to make room for Dick's Sporting Goods, which is to open in fall 2005.

Forman also operates Shaker Square Cinemas, Tower City Cinemas, Hickory Ridge Cinemas, Chagrin Cinemas, Austintown Movie and the Cedar Lee Theatre, which has been a mecca for independent and foreign film aficionados for 28 years.

"If there's one question that's been asked regularly of me," Forman said, "it's 'When are you going to do this on the West Side?'

"The Variety isn't going to be the equivalent of the Cedar Lee, but with 12 screens we'll have the opportunity to mix up the offering to show commercial blockbusters as well as independent films."

The Cornerstone, at the site of a former Tops supermarket and USA Skates, will feature restaurants, shopping, apartments, homes, walking trails, a pedestrian-friendly main street and a central park. It will be anchored by Old Time Pottery and Claire's Folly, a 96,000-square-foot family entertainment complex, also set to open in spring 2005.

To reach this Plain Dealer reporter:

fhenry@plaind.com, 216-999-4806

© 2004 The Plain Dealer.

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