John Schweiger compares the relationship between his Coming Attractions Theaters, Inc., and the Lewis County Mall to an engagement.
"I feel like we've been at the altar but haven't gotten married yet," the Coming Attractions chief executive officer joked, of the four-year process of trying to install a 10-screen multiplex theater between Centralia and Chehalis.
The Ashland, Ore.-based theater chain has been working since 2003 to put their latest project, Midway Cinemas, in the mall. The biggest delay, a clause in mall tenant Sears' contract requiring their approval before any new tenants are allowed, held up the project for the last two years. A few months ago, however, Minnesota-based mall owners Chehalis, LLC settled the agreement with Sears, clearing the way for Coming Attractions.
"We've been ready to go for three years," said Schweiger, who was adamant that the slow process was not the fault of his company.
"We're like a thoroughbred that's been waiting in the gates for four years," he said. "If we don't get going soon our muscles won't work."
Architects Inspect the Site
The building plans are about half finished, according to Schweiger, who brought a team of architects and engineers to Chehalis Thursday morning. The plans should be complete, and building permits obtained, in time to start construction no later than Oct. 1.
"With a little bit of luck we'll start the demolition before that," he said. The demolition will mean gutting the former Rite-Aid site on the east end of the mall down to it's ceiling, exterior walls and support beams.
While an ideal opening day would fall on either May or Nov. 1, the theater should be ready to open in March or April, he added.
Improvements to the building will run about $2 million and new theater equipment will cost between $1.5 and $1.8 million, Schweiger said.
From First-Run to Foreign
Each of the ten stadium-seating theaters will be set up to show first-run digital movies, as opposed to typical 35 mm films.
"It'll be 100 percent digital, which is the newest, latest, most expensive thing available," Schweiger said.
Two of the theaters will hold over 200 viewers but smaller theaters will be set up for foreign or art films. A small, medium and large theater will each be set up to hold business conferences, and a number of the theaters will be ready for traditional film movies.
With digital screens, he added, anything broadcast via satellite, like sporting events, can be shown on screen.
"There won't be a theater in the Northwest area that will have finer equipment," he said. "This theater is being personally sized to fit in the Centralia-Chehalis area."
Effect on the Mall
Coming Attractions Theaters, started by Schweiger in 1989, operates 20 theaters in Washington, Oregon and California, including sites in Aberdeen and Astoria.
The theater sparked growth in Aberdeen's South Shore Mall, Schweiger said, and should mean the same for Lewis County.
"This mall will be full before we're open, is my guess," he said.
Joe Rosbach, manager of the Lewis County Mall, said he's heard more interest in the mall since Coming Attractions got involved.
"We've been getting feedback for the last four or five years," he said. The setbacks, however, haven't helped.
"It's been kind of tough on a leasing standpoint," he added.
The theater will bring in 25 jobs, about half of which will be full-time, to the area.
Competition Down the Road
Daryl Lund, owner of the Chehalis Theater since 1994 and co-owner of the neary Cinema 3 Theater in the Yard Birds Shopping Center with Jim Rothlin, didn't express much concern when informed of Coming Attractions' progress.
"I guess we'll just wonder how they're going to make it with us in town," said Lund, who has operated the Yard Birds theater with Rothlin for four and a half years. "We're going to get part of the good movies."
Aaron VanTuyl covers education, economic affairs and religion for The Chronicle. He may be reached at 807-8237 or by e-mail at avantuyl@chronline.com. His blog, "VanTuyl's Views," is online at www.chronline.com.
