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Theatre complex to occupy downtown space

Jul 12, 2016 | 4:43 PM

A new movie theatre capable of drawing hundreds of people each night has been confirmed for a vacant lot downtown.

The city of North Battleford announced Tuesday, July 11 that Magic Lantern Theatres (M.L.T.) has purchased the parcel of land across Railway Ave. from the courthouse. BattlefordsNOW first reported last week that the lot had been sold for a commercial development.

Bob Evans, director of development for the Edmonton-based company, said there are plans to build a five-screen movie theatre with the latest in sound, seating, and digital projection.

“It’ll be anything you see in Saskatoon, Calgary, or Edmonton, it’ll be right here in North Battleford,” Evans said. He added that 3D is being considered, and would be simple to add. He expects it to be open within a year, adding that construction would take nine to 10 months depending on the weather.

“We want to be a part of the community and I think that’s going to help bring some life downtown for everybody, including us,” Evans said.

Mayor Ian Hamilton grinned as he discussed the prospects for the entire downtown.

“We think that now, this is our entertainment hub. Now the complementary services may very well follow. We’re very confident that they will. But until that happens we’ve got a little ways to go before we close some more deals,” Hamilton said, adding the city’s director of economic development Jennifer Niesink is working on bringing more businesses to the area.

Hamilton said getting more people downtown is key to its revitalization.

“There are as many as 690 seats in these five theatres. So that’s a lot of density, a lot of people. We know that we can handle it. We’re confident we can,” Hamilton said. “This is not their first theatre. They’ve done their research, they’ve done their homework, and they know we can sustain this and make this a very profitable investment for them.”

Hamilton said the company was initially concerned about whether the city was large enough, until it looked at the greater region.

Hamilton also credited the recently-adopted Official Community Plan for ensuring that the new theatres would be built downtown. Lisa Kissick, executive director of the North Battleford Business Improvement District, expects a positive impact.

“We’ve been waiting for a big development for this for downtown for a few years, and to see a space like this that’s previously been vacant for a couple of decades, to have something like this that’s so needed in our community is so valuable,” she said.

What wasn’t clear was the future of the existing Capitol Theatre. Hamilton said M.L.T. and Dynasty Theatres, owners of the two-screen Capitol are in talks, but he declined to elaborate.

Dynasty Theatres had no comment when contacted.

 

Geoff Smith is battlefordsNOW’s News Director, business and agriculture reporter. He can be reached at gsmith@jpbg.ca or tweet him @smithco. Concerns regarding this story can be addressed to Geoff at 306-446-6397.