Comments on a proposed movie theater for Middletown
1. Middletown Mayor Larry Mulligan: "I think it's a good use and we're excited to welcome the new development."
“No immediate concerns, as they have committed to sticking to our building standards.”
2. Middletown Vice Mayor Dan Picard: "I think it's a great project, I think it's a perfect fit for that part of the city. I think it will lead to more development in that area."
“I think it will continue to draw more restaurants, more entertainment as opposed to offices right now (on the south side of Ohio 122).”
3. Middletown councilman Joe Mulligan: "I'm still just learning a little bit more about it."
“It’s a good sign that developers are interested in our city.”
4. Middletown councilman Josh Laubach: "My initial thought is that it shows the growing level of interest of outsiders investing in Middletown."
“Based on what I know at this point I think it could have a real positive impact on the community.”
He said he has no concerns at this point.
5. Middletown councilwoman Anita Scott Jones: "I'm always interested to see who's interested in investing in Middletown." The project has to go before planning commission, so "I know there are going to be some facade issues and that, but I don't really know yet….I'm doing my own research at this point."
A proposed 12-screen movie theater that would be built east of the Interstate 75 and Ohio 122 interchange could be the spark that ignites other major development projects in Middletown’s East End, city officials said.
Plans are on the drawing board to build the movie theater near Atrium Medical Center and the Renaissance housing subdivision. The city’s plans for that area, known as the Renaissance District, have long included a high-tech health campus at the hospital, an office park, housing and retail.
The area has seen more than $300 million of investment in the past five years. Another 500 acres of land zoned for commercial and business purposes is open for development in Renaissance East, said Denise Hamet, Middletown economic development director.
But the Great Recession of December 2007 to June 2009 has affected further development in the East Pointe office park and stalled construction of new houses in recent years. One office building in East Pointe has been built, when original plans called for three. Housing construction is starting to pick back up.
Some of the most recent investment in the area around the interchange includes Hampton Inn, which opened in May.
“It really is our chance to get a full-service theater,” Hamet said.
“We think it will stimulate restaurants to come in the area, that way we are providing additional services to businesses in the area and provide services that will help to recruit new businesses,” she said.
Hamet made a proposal to city council June 18 to sell 18 acres of city-owned land east of I-75, east of Union Road and south of Ohio 122 to a real estate developer for a movie theater. If approved, the land would be sold for approximately $1.5 million to Texas-based Anthony Properties LLC, which specializes in building and leasing movie theater properties across the country.
City council will vote on the contract at the next meeting July 2.
The land opened up recently. It was previously under option by Cincinnati commercial real estate development company Al Neyer Inc., but that agreement, in place since 2006, was dissolved in 2012.
Al Neyer Inc. built in that area the East Pointe office building, at 3420 Atrium Blvd. The building opened in 2009 and was sold in 2012.
The plans for Anthony Properties to build a movie theater would compete with Middletown movie theater Danbarry Cinemas.
Daniel Heilbrunn, owner of Danbarry Cinemas, declined to comment on speculative activity.
The new owner of Towne Mall said he’s aware of the city’s project to bring a movie theater to the same part of town as the mall.
Earlier this year, a rendering of site plans for Towne Mall released in February included a national movie theater chain. But a movie theater is no longer in the mall’s future, said George Ragheb, one of the owners in the investment group SA Mary Ohio LLC that bought Towne Mall in 2012.
“We decided a few months back we are not doing a movie theater,” Ragheb said. The city’s plans “will definitely help our project, not hurt our project.”
Even if city council approves the sale of the land, the construction of a movie theater is not a done deal. The proposed contract includes contingencies such as due diligence for Anthony Properties to conduct soil testing on the land to vet if it’s buildable and do traffic studies.
The project must also go before the city’s planning commission to meet building standards and for zoning changes.
After a time period to allow for the due diligence, both parties have the option to cancel the contract.
If all moves forward as planned, a representative of the developer said the earliest a movie theater could open is by the Thanksgiving/Christmas holiday season of 2014 or ahead of summer 2015.
The total cost of investment for a project like this is $10 million to $12 million to buy the land, construction and infrastructure, said Lamar Fields, a representative of Anthony Properties.
“This particular piece of property is attractive because of its proximity to the interstate. The topography of the land is favorable,” Fields said.
“The market itself, there’s just a hole. The south Dayton theater is only 12 miles away from here and the West Chester theater is about 13 miles away from here, so there’s a gap and that’s what we look for,” he said.
Terri Nelson and her sister, Tonya, of Monroe, are excited about the possibility of another movie theater coming to the Middletown area. Right now, they said, they either see movies at Danbarry Cinemas on Ohio 122 or near the Dayton Mall or at the theater at Union Centre in West Chester Twp.
Terri Nelson said a theater built right off Interstate 75 at the Middletown exit would be more convenient for Middletown residents and those who live in the surrounding communities.
She also was excited about the retail development that should follow the opening of another theater.
“It’s all about having as many options as possible,” Nelson said after watching “The Internship” at Danbarry. “You want to be able to catch a movie, eat and shop all in the same area.”
Her sister added: “This can be only good for Middletown.”
Still, they said, they don’t believe there is enough business in the area to support two theaters.
“People will go to the newer one, the one that’s better,” Terri Nelson said.
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