Washington and Fayette counties still without full-time, first-run movie theaters
Washington and Fayette counties still without full-time, first-run movie theaters
By Brad Hundt
Staff writer
bhundt@observer-reporter.com
Last summer, both “Oppenheimer” and “Barbie” managed to get people excited about movies in a way they hadn’t been since before the COVID-19 pandemic.
And it made them excited not only about movies, but also about the idea of going to see them in an auditorium, on a big screen, with hordes of strangers surrounding them. For a lot of film buffs, “Oppenheimer” and “Barbie” were movies that demanded to be seen before they landed on a streaming service or on-demand.
Unless they were willing to drive, though, residents of Washington and Fayette counties were largely left on the sidelines amid all the hoopla.
Neither county has had a multiplex showing first-run movies for more than two years. Uniontown Mall’s six-screen multiplex that was operated by the AMC chain closed in July 2021, and the 14-screen multiplex at Washington Crown Center closed when the pandemic hit and has never reopened. The parent company that owned Regal Cinemas, which operated the Crown Center multiplex, filed for bankruptcy last year.
According to a report last year by CNBC, the overall number of screens in the United States has fallen by about 3,000 since 2019.
The pandemic was brutal for movie theaters, getting people out of the habit of attending, and leading to a dramatic slowdown in the amount of product available to be shown. The rise of streaming services like Netflix, Prime Video, Apple TV and Peacock have also led some movie buffs to retreat to their living rooms, an exodus fueled by the shrinking amount of time between a movie’s theatrical release and its availability for small-screen viewing.
Fayette County does have two drive-in theaters – the Comet Drive-In in Connellsville, and the Brownsville Drive-In in Grindstone, both of which are open in the warm-weather months. The State Theatre Center for the Performing Arts in Uniontown shows classic films periodically, but neither Washington nor Fayette counties have full-time, fully dedicated movie theaters. The last time this was the case was probably sometime in the early 1900s. The closest theaters are in Bridgeville, in Allegheny County, in Triadelphia, W.Va., or near Morgantown, W.Va.
The multiplex at Uniontown Mall hasn’t been entirely mothballed over the last two-and-a-half years, according to Sue Chambliss, the mall’s manager. Auditoriums have been rented out for special events, and some parties have expressed an interest in the theaters, but Chambliss characterizes these as “soft leads” – in other words, nothing concrete.
“It’s something that is being looked at,” she explained. Eventually getting another movie theater at the mall is “not out of the question.”
Chambliss said filling that space is among the mall’s priorities, since malls do best in today’s environment when they offer specialty retail stores and activities – something that can’t be ordered online, she noted.
Meanwhile, in Washington County, there are “several interested parties” in bringing movies back to Crown Center, according to Civil Knox, the mall’s general manager.
“We are in the waiting stage,” she said. “Keep your fingers crossed.”
Crown Center has struggled in recent years with the departure of several anchor stores, including Sears, BonTon and Macy’s. Malls across the board have also struggled in the face of online shopping. Knox said it would be “amazing for us” if a movie theater returned to Crown Center.
Jeff Kotula, president of the Washington County Chamber of Commerce, also said he would be happy to see a movie theater return to the mall.
“While the chamber focuses its economic development and job creation efforts on traditional industries and small business, we also recognize the importance of movie theaters, shopping venues and other amenities that allow Washington County to retain a high quality of life for its current residents and attract new ones to our county,” he said.
“Economic development is not just about sites, incentives and a competitive tax structure. It also focuses on talent attraction and the livability of an area.”