A groundbreaking for Laemmle Theatres is underway, marking the next phase in the Redevelopment Block for Old Town Newhall.
The event, scheduled 10 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 17, is set to take place at the corner of Main Street and Lyons Avenue.
Laemmle Theatres is a family-run movie theater chain established in 1938, showing independent, foreign, art and documentary films in the Los Angeles area.
Among a list of nine other locations, Laemmle Newhall would sit on the corner of Railroad Avenue and Lyons Avenue, northeast of the block project.
The new theater building is projected to include seven screens and about 500 seats, according to the city’s website.
Greg Laemmle, the president of Laemmle Theatres, said during the Newhall parking structure groundbreaking last year that he has heard Santa Clarita residents sometimes travel more than 30 miles to Hollywood to see a film not shown locally.
“This is an advantage for those that would drive to the San Fernando Valley and Los Angeles,” he said Wednesday. “We think this will be an economic driver for the Santa Clarita area.”
He said besides screening films that are not typically offered locally, the theaters will also show “upscale, good-quality films.”
The theaters are part of two other projects, which includes the Old Town Newhall parking structure and Newhall Crossings.
Construction of the parking structure took about 12 months and opened to the public in May, offering 372 parking stalls and an event area on the rooftop deck.
Newhall Crossings is a mixed-use location planned to house 20,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space and more than 40 residential units with subterranean parking. The project broke ground a year ago and is expected to be complete in the summer of 2019.
Laemmle Newhall is scheduled to open by the end of 2019, according to the city’s website.
City Council members and representatives from Laemmle Theatres and Serrano Development Group are expected to talk about the cultural impact the theaters are expected to offer to residents during the Oct. 17 ceremony.
To find out more about the Redevelopment Block, visit the “Mixed Use Project” tab at oldtownnewhall.com.
