Ricardo Kaulessar|NorthJersey.com
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On Wednesday, with the easing of coronavirus limits,movie theaters in New Jersey can open to larger audiences, just in time for summer blockbuster season.
Although the state has ended set capacity limits at movie theaters, restaurants, and other indoor gathering sites, mask and social distancing regulations will stay in place to ensure that people are 6 feet apart.
It'sgood news for not only major movie chains, but also smaller local theaters that have weatheredshutdowns and partial shutdowns. Those that survived, that is.
For movie lovers venturing back to the local cinema, here's the scoop on which theaters are gone, which are still here, and what changes you can expect.
What to expect at movie theaters
Majorchainssuch as AMC Theaters,Cinemark and Regal Cinemas have been recouping their losses following months of closure andhave various coronavirus safety measures in place: socially distanced seating at gradually increasedcapacity,mask requirements and staggered showtimes.
A number of major chains have implemented CinemaSafe, a set of voluntary health and safety measuresaddressing face coverings (mandatory in New Jersey)HVAC systems,and mode of payment (credit cards or contactless payments preferred).
AMC Theatershave upgraded air filtration systems from theindustry standard of MERV 8 to MERV 13 and offermobile foodand drink ordering to avoid trips to the concession stand.
What theaters are reopening?
Smaller chains such as Texas-based IPic Theaters is still operating its IPicFort Leeon a modified weekend schedule,while Florida-based CMX Cinemasin Closter Plazais operating five days a weekwith films including"Those Who Wish Me Dead" andblockbuster "Godzilla vs. Kong." Its food service is open.
Smallertheaters in North Jersey havestruggled even more than their larger rivals, but many are hoping to make a splash with Memorial Day weekend openings.
One of them is The Westwood Cinemas, a six-screen, 950-seat movie house on Center Avenue in Westwoodthat is planningtoreopenonMay 28, according to its spokesperson, Roger Tashjian.
Tashjian said the curtain will risefor the first timesince March 2020, when Gov. Phil Murphy issued an executive order closing nonessential retail businesses.Tashjian saidownerSpiros Papaswas waiting for restrictions to loosen to allow to operate at a level that would be enable it to be profitable.
"We're allowed to be open at a decent number and the loosening of the restrictions has definitely helped," Tashjian said. "The fact that it's Memorial Day weekend and there are now some movies that are worthwhile, that theatrical companies are starting to show."
Tashjian said Westwood Cinemas willfollowall coronavirus safety protocols;it has installed plexiglass shields at the concession area and will space outseating.
The theater will most likely reopen with "Cruella," the Disney release starring Emma Stone.
George Sayegh’s family operates the Hawthorne Theaterand until recently, the Maplewood Theater.
Those theaters reopened for a fewweeks after Murphy raised capacity limits in September to 25%or 150 moviegoers. They closed because business was too slow.
Sayegh saidthere are plans to reopen the Hawthorne Theateron Memorial Day weekendas COVID-19 vaccine rates are risingand "people feel confident going out and living their best lives."
"Now that there's a vaccine, there seems to be a lot more confidence so hopefully come Memorial Day weekend, people are ready to go out and enjoy a good movie and enjoy some popcorn," Sayegh said.
Sayegh said his family will no longer operate the Maplewood Theaterbut did not offer further details.
Laura and DavidRose, who operated the Ramsey Theaterfor eight years, until it closed in September after 93 years in operation, havemade a comeback in the movie business.
They now operate the Township Theatre, previously the Washington Township Cinemason Pascack Road.
The theater had been closed for over a year due to the pandemic. It reopened April 23and now shows films several days a week, including the romantic drama "Finding You."
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Laura Rose, who grew up in Washington Township, saidher husband met with the owner of the shopping center in February and they signed a lease a week after.
David Rose saidthey installedbrand-new equipment, including a sound system.
"It was rundown, it was dirty, a fair amount of stuff was broken," David Rose said. "I had to do a fair amount of flooring."
Laura Rose said the pandemic did not deter them from pursuing a dream ofstarting anew.
"This is an opportunity to do something that is our livelihood," Laura Rose said. "This is what we have been doing for eight years, but we're cautiously optimistic that business isgoing to come back."
The Fabian 8 in Paterson has been operating on a weekend schedule since October, according to manager Tom Arnold, as the allowed capacity much of the time was 35%.Arnold said he had smallcrowds in the 1,165-seat movie house leading up to April, when"Godzilla vs. Kong" brought back more audience members.
The schedule will expand in summerwhen kids are out ofschool and big-budget releases arrive.
"There have been big releases but they have been kind of scattered," Arnold said. "Films that are coming out in the summer that aren't going to be available for streaming will give us a better clue as to how many people will be willing to come back to the theater."
Further down the road,The Bellevue Theatre in Montclair plans to reopen in fall, after being closed for the past four years. The building will undergo a renovation.
Keeping up in suspense
The ending is unclear for some local cinemas.
Mid-level chainBow Tie Cinemas hasa couple of its 38 locations nationwide open with plans to reopen four more in Connecticut andVirginia in May. However, its website does not show any reopening dates for New Jersey in its Ridgewood and Millburn locations. And its theaters in Tenafly, Hoboken and Montclair are not even listed on the website. Calls to Bow Tie executives Jared Milgram and Joe Masher were not returned.
Also trying to figure out Bow Tie's plans are downtown merchant associations in Ridgewood.
"Some people have tried to reach them about trying to get together some events and reopening but unfortunately there's been dead silence," said ScottLief, president of the Ridgewood Chamber of Commerce.
Tony Damiano, executive director and treasurer of the Ridgewood Guild, an organization dedicated to the revitalizing of Ridgewood, said he has also tried to reach Bow Tie about holding an event in the theater in September as well as the Ridgewood Guild's film festival next year, to no avail.
Teaneck Cinemas, a four-screen, 525-seat theater on Cedar Lane, showed movies seven days aweek after Murphy’s announcement in September, but by November had cut down screenings to weekends only, since many moviegoers stayed away. Now, it is closed, but there is hope it will reopen.
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Teaneck Deputy Mayor Elie Katz saidthe Realtor who manages the property for its owner, the Beekman Estate,reported that the theaterexpects to reopen. Katz hopes that will be the case, since it brings in customersfor other businesses on Cedar Lane.
"[The owner] recognizes that it's good to have that theater for Cedar Lane and also for his own tenants because he owns a sizable amount of Cedar Lane," Katz said. "It has certainly reduced the amount of people going to Cedar Lane because of the lack of having the movie theater."
Cineapolis operates a Parsippany theater that has been "open while underrenovation" since last year but does not show any current movie listings according to its website.
The shuttered Ramsey Theatre has a buyer, identified as a Ramsey resident.
Chris Coronato, the listing agent, said the theater was shown 20 times to prospective buyers, and the majority of them "were really looking at it as continuing on with the movie theater or combination of sorts."
"Quite a few different Ramsey residents and Mahwah residents, a lot of locals that know the theater or know the space were definitely looking at operating it as a theater, but unfortunately none of them really pulled the trigger," Coronato said.
The pandemic made them wary, he said. "We listed this thing back in September and we were only six months into this and not knowing. The vaccine wascoming out, it seemedlike there is light at the end of the tunnel, but who would take the gamble."
Coronato said the new owner plans to operate the space as a video-gaming center.
Other local standalone theaters that are still closed includethe Bergenfield Cinemas, Kinnelon Cinemas and Wayne Movietown with no information provided on their websites as to when they will open again.
RicardoKaulessaris a local reporter for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community,please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
Email:kaulessar@northjersey.com
Twitter:@ricardokaul
