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Chain’s
Screen Count To Grow
53 Percent By Early 2008
Harkins To Debut
148 In Two Years
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Harkins Theatres on Feb. 1
announced plans to open 148 screens at 10 new Phoenix-area
multis within the next two years.
The circuit broke ground on the first
of the sites Jan. 31.
 Each site is slated to feature wall-to-wall
screens, rocking seats, retractable armrests, expanded
concession
menus, online and phone ticket sales and on-site ticketing
kiosks. Select plexes will also include a supervised
childcare facility for children from ages 3 to 8.
Harkins’ planned Arizona
plexes include:
• a Peoria 14-plex to open this autumn at Loop 101 and
Northern;
• a Gilbert 18-plex to open next winter at Loop 202 and
Williams Field Road;
• a Chandler 14-plex to open the same winter at Gilbert
and Loop 202;
• a Tempe 18-plex to open spring 2007 at Loop 101 and Loop
202;
• a Phoenix 14-plex to open spring 2007 at 19th Avenue
and Bethany Home Road;
• a Phoenix 14-plex to open spring 2007 at Happy Valley
Road and I-17;
• a Casa Grande 14-plex to open spring 2007 at the I-10
and Florence;
• a Mesa 14-plex to open fall 2007 at US-60 and Signal
Butte Road;
• a Goodyear 14-plex to open late 2007 at I-10 and Pebble
Creek Parkway; and
• a Surprise 14-plex to open spring 2008 at Loop 303 and
Cactus Lane.
“We are obviously very excited about
the industry and this unprecedented expansion in the
Phoenix market,” said
circuit CEO Dan Harkins. “This historic
slate of projects will ensure superior moviegoing
in
Arizona for
many years to come.”
Scottsdale, Ariz.-based Harkins currently
operates 278 screens at 22 sites in Arizona and Oklahoma.
End-Of-Year Debuts In Boise & Salisbury
Regal Bows 25 In
Idaho & Maryland
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Regal Entertainment Group (REG)
opened 25 new screens at two new sites during 2005’s
final quarter.
 The Edwards Boise Downtown Stadium 9-plex in Boise,
Idaho, launched in November while the Regal Cinemas Salisbury
Stadium 16-plex in Salisbury, Md., bowed in December.
The Idaho site is part of a plan to revitalize downtown
Boise with new development, and is located on Broad Street,
one block south of The Grove Plaza at the city’s
center. The grand opening of the new plex was marked
by a “King of the Silver Screen” sweepstakes
where patrons entered to win a trip to Los Angeles.
 The Maryland 16-plex, located off Interstate 13 about
10 miles south of the Delaware border, boasts the first
auditoria in Salisbury featuring stadium seating. The
site opened with a fundraising event, screening holiday
classics for $1, with proceeds benefiting Toys for
Tots.
Regal Entertainment Group, based in Knoxville, Tenn.,
operates 6,273 screens at 558 sites in 40 states
under the Regal Cinemas, Edwards Theatres and United
Artists
Theatres banners. |
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Three Sites in North Carolina,
Texas & Washington
Dec. 14 Launches
46 AMC Screens
LKANSAS
CITY, Mo. – AMC Theatres grew by 46 screens Dec.
14 as the exhibition colossus opened the doors to three
new plexes in North Carolina, Texas and Washington State.
 Charlotte, N.C., is home to AMC’s Northlake 14-plex,
located adjacent to the Northlake Mall complex on Interstate
77 at Harris Boulevard.
The chain’s Kent Station 14-plex is situated
in Kent, Wash., about 15 miles south of Seattle and 10
miles
north of Tacoma. The new multi anchors the first phase
of the new Kent Station complex between James and Smith
Streets.
The Firewheel 18-plex rolled out in Garland, Texas,
about 15 miles northeast of Dallas. It borders the open-air
regional Firewheel Town Center at the intersection of
State Highway 190 and State Highway 78.
All three plexes feature stadium-style seating, retractable
armrests and wall-to-wall screens. Each site also offers
digital plasma screen menus at the concessions stand,
separate arcade areas, online and phone ticketing and
automated box office kiosks.
 The Texas facility marked its grand opening by unveiling
the world’s largest box of popcorn. The structure,
believed to best the previous record set in Spain last
year and expected to find its place in the Guinness Book
of World Records, stands 18 feet tall and contained 2,200
pounds of popped corn. The red-carpet grand opening festivities
also featured searchlights, fireworks and a free small
popcorn with every ticket through Dec. 18.
Kansas City, Mo.-based AMC, which completed its merger
with Loews Cineplex in late January, currently operates
4,431 screens in the United States and another 1,241
in Canada, France, Hong Kong, Spain and the United
Kingdom.
Multiplex Meets McDonough
Great Escape 16
Unveiled in Georgia
McDONOUGH, Ga. – Great Escape Theatres on Dec.
2 opened its latest 16-plex in McDonough, Ga., about
30 miles southeast of Atlanta.
 The new construction is a part of ongoing expansion
plans, and the circuit currently has 75 screens under
construction.
Located off Interstate 75 and anchoring a new development
still in construction, the multi features stadium-style
rocking seats with retractable armrests in all auditoria,
advanced online ticketing, automated box office kiosks,
a two-story game room and a separate activity space
for party rentals. Free refills are available with
purchase
of large popcorns and large drinks.
Based in New Albany, Ind., Great Escape operates
203 screens at 19 sites in Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee,
Ohio, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Illinois, Missouri,
and
West Virginia. |
