That’s a wrap: Lease at Silver City not renewed
Cineplex will not be renewing its lease at one of its locations in Windsor.
On Wednesday, the group confirmed to CTV News Windsor the lease at Silver City, on Walker Road, expires at the end of the year.
The decision is unrelated to temporary closures in Ontario or COVID-19.
Cineplex says pre-pandemic attendance levels showed movie goers in Windsor were gravitating to their other location, Cineplex Odeon Devonshire Mall, which features newer amenities.
The theatre offers enhanced movie experiences, such as full recliner seating, ultraAVX and D-Box motion seats.
“If the pandemic wouldn’t have happened would those refurbishments have happened at that property, and I think there’s a good chance it would have, which would have kept it a bit more viable,” Windsor International Film Festival (WIFF) director Vincent Georgie says.
He says losing a dozen screens at Silver City will mean fewer films for movie-goers.
“You’re gonna lose out a little bit on the diversity of programming,” Georgie says. “It’s going to be really concentrated to your top eight or 10 films at the box office. That’s it.”
No movie theatre could also be a blow to nearby businesses on Walker Road.
“What’s gonna happen to all those restaurants? What’s gonna happen to the retailers who depend on people after they go, before they go to the theatre that they would stop in and do some shopping in between,” said Joe Mikhail, president of Mikhail Holdings, owners of the Silver City property.
He says the theatre paved the way for one of the largest commercial sectors in the city.
“Famous Players came down, built this huge 70,000 square foot facility. Then all of a sudden people had to follow it,” Mikhail says.
He tells CTV News he’s reached out to Landmark Cinemas as a possible replacement, and is hoping for a Hollywood ending.
“You could never build a movie theatre in this country again,” Mikhail says. “The costs are too astronomical. So if it’s gone, you’ll never see a theatre there again.”
Silver City was in business for over two decades.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Air traveller complaints to Canadian Transportation Agency hit new high
The Canadian Transportation Agency has hit a record high of more than 71,000 complaints in a backlog. The quasi-judicial regulator and tribunal tasked with settling disputes between customers and the airlines says the backlog is growing because the number of incoming complaints keeps increasing.
LIVE @ 1:15 PT B.C. premier to give announcement related to public drug use
B.C.'s premier is scheduled to give an update Friday about public drug use in the province.
Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
AFN chief says Air Canada offered a 15% discount after her headdress was mishandled
After the Assembly of First Nations' national chief complained to Air Canada about how staffers treated her and her ceremonial headdress on a flight this week, she says the airline responded by offering a 15 per cent discount on her next flight.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Flight attendant indicted in attempt to record teen girl in airplane bathroom
An American Airlines flight attendant was indicted Thursday after authorities said he tried to secretly record video of a 14-year-old girl using an airplane bathroom last September.
76ers All-Star centre Joel Embiid says he has Bell's palsy
Philadelphia 76ers All-Star centre Joel Embiid has been diagnosed with Bell’s palsy, a form of facial paralysis he says has affected him since before the play-in tournament.
DEVELOPING Bird flu outbreaks: WHO weighs in on public health risk
The current overall public health risk posed by the H5N1 bird flu virus is low, the World Health Organization said on Friday, but urged countries to stay alert for cases of animal-to-human transmission.
Island near Mull of Kintyre for sale for US$3.1 million
An idyllic 453-acre private island is up for sale off the west coast of Scotland and it comes with sandy beaches, puffins galore, seven houses, a pub, a helipad and a flock of black-faced sheep.