A beloved movie theatre in Monrovia announced its sudden closure last month, and some other local business owners are concerned by the ripple effect it could have on the city’s economy.
The marquee outside of LOOK Dine-In Cinemas, formerly located on S. Myrtle Avenue, now reads “THANK YOU MONROVIA. WE WILL MISS YOU.”
For many, that message feels personal.
“I’m sure everybody is gonna feel the impact,” said Andy Montgomery, who also owns a small business in Monrovia. “It hurts all vendors down here. It draws people; everyone wants to go to the movies.”
The Monrovia theater’s closure was part of a wider shutdown across Southern California for Look Dine-In Cinemas locations. Despite being a mainstay in the area for years, other business owners say that the weeks since have presented a challenge, since the theater provided a steady flow of customers before and after showtimes.
“It’s been rough. Just the ups and downs, cost of goods,” said Dave Friedman, who owns the popular restaurant Basin 141, just doors down from the shuttered theater.
Across the street, employees at a nearby coffee shop said they could immediately feel a business change.
“I think everyone was really upset and it caught everyone off guard. Nobody was expecting that to happen,” said one employee. “You come out for a movie, you want ice cream after or you want a coffee after or you want dinner.”
Monrovia Mayor Becky Shevlin said that the vacancies and closures reflect the broad changes that many Southern California downtowns are facing.
“Brick and mortar, in general, it’s really, really hard to compete with online sales and things like that,” Shevlin said.
While the future of the movie theater’s building is uncertain, she said that Monrovia continues to draw crowds to the area weekly through other events like their Friday night street fair.
