New 8-Plex Theater Opens in Providence

Harry Potter, James Bond, Frodo the Hobbit and Captain Picard are moving into Providence this week.

Providence has gone Hollywood. Better yet, Hollywood is coming to Providence. Stadium 8, a new movie theater opening Friday, will have the largest screen in Cache Valley and stadium seating.

Bret Peterson, president of the Spring Creek Village Development where the theater is located said the theater "will have a great impact" on Providence. "It is going to be a real attraction and destination," he said.

Spring Creek Village Development leases the land and the building to Westates Theatres, which will operate the theater.

Tony Rudman, vice president and legal counsel for Westates, said, "We've got eight screens, all stadium seating, digital sound, wall-to-wall screens." The theaters have rocking love seats with retractable arms, projectors that those in the industry describe as the finest, and two separate concessions areas, according to Rudman.

Westates operates all of the first-run movie theaters in Cache Valley, with 20 screens. They operate about 100 screens throughout Utah, Arizona, Idaho, Wyoming, and Nevada, Rudman said.

"It's the first stadium seating here in the valley, which is a big deal. It will be a unique experience that way. It's high-back, high-tech seating, it's really comfortable," Peterson said.

The biggest theater is the one of the largest screens Westates operates in the state of Utah, Rudman said.

Peterson said, "It'll be a much larger picture by far than anyone in the valley."

He said pricing will be the same at the new theater as other Westates Theatres in the valley, despite being a brand new theater.

Kathryn Fifield, a senior at Utah State University, said she can't wait to see the new theater. "I am very exited to see special effects, just because I think they have a lot more impact on bigger screens."

Peterson said Spring Creek is also negotiating with national and local restaurant chains to build near the theater. They anticipate building at least two or three sit-down restaurants in stand-alone buildings, and smaller restaurants in the existing development, he said. "We're anticipating over the next several months that we'll have some of those deals done."

He said citizens on the south end of Cache Valley are excited about not having to drive across Logan to go to dinner and a movie. Peterson anticipates people in nearby cities like Brigham and Tremonton who have gone south for stadium theaters will come to Logan instead.

"We'll get a fair amount of traffic from those people over here who have been driving down to Layton to go to the movies. We think that will be a positive, bringing in some revenue dollars from outside the valley." Peterson said business has increased already, and the theater will be positively affect retail in the area.

Rudman said it should be a significant economic impact on the valley. The theater will hire about 100 part- and full-time employees.

In a Providence City Council meeting in November, Peterson said the theater expects gross revenues in the first year to be between $3 million and $5 million, selling 500,000 to 600,000 tickets.

"This will facilitate additional development out here, restaurants and other retail that will come around this project which will provide a fair amount of revenue, traffic and development here.

"There's been very little development on the south end of Logan," he said. "This area's been pretty underserved. People are getting excited about not having to drive all the way across town to go to a movie or out to eat."

Peterson said the theater has been years in the making. "We began the [Spring Creek Village development] out here about a year ago. Westates had been looking for a home for an eight-plex theater for about three or four years. We were able to combine it with our project here and make it happen."

To find out what movies will be playing, showtimes, or to buy tickets online, visit the Westates Theaters website, www.westatestheatres.com.

By Roy Burton