By Demi Guo
The lawyer for the company that purchased the Manhasset and Roslyn Bow Tie cinemas said that it is “not financially viable” to leave Manhasset’s theater in its current state.
Though “maintaining a movie theater is not off the table,” part of the space will have to be devoted to other uses, the lawyer, Paul Bloom, a former Great Neck village justice and trustee, said at a meeting of the Council of Greater Manhasset Civic Associations last Wednesday. He represents Cinemas GMC LLC, the new owner of the two theaters.
“It could shrink down to zero, it could shrink down to two, it could shrink down to one, it could expand to four,” he said this week of the number of screens in the cinema. “All these things are being explored right now.”
Cinemas GMC LLC, a single-use company formed just for this purchase, bought the Plandome Road theater and Roslyn’s Bow Tie last month. Great Neck’s Bow Tie theater is also for sale, but Bloom said that the LLC is only focused on the two it bought. As of yet, he added, the LLC has not talked about plans for Roslyn’s Bow Tie theater.
Bloom and Adam Ruttner, a member of the LLC, attended the council’s monthly meeting to initiate a discussion about what Manhasset residents would like to see become of the Bow Tie space.
“We bought the company to make a profit,” Bloom, of Melville-based Harras Bloom & Archer LLP, said. “We’re here to listen.”
The space’s zoning is open to a variety of possible uses, including office, retail or hotel space, he said.
Meeting attendees said that the movie theater property should be used in a way that will add to the area’s downtown nightlife.
Instead of a cinema, perhaps the space could be made into a small center for the performing arts, as exists in Huntington, or an eat-in theater that takes reservations, said Marion Endrizzi, a board member of the Plandome Heights Civic Association. Or, suggested Andrew Schwenk, the council’s first vice president, the property could be a mixed-used establishment with both movies and another form of entertainment.
The only issue would be parking, since the cinema does not have any, Schwenk said. But, several attendees pointed out, the location is well-placed to cater to youths since it is within walking distance of places like the Manhasset Secondary School.
“They like to walk,” Schwenk said. “Even in the snow.”
Additional retail space would be one of the least feasible options for reworking the space, Bloom said.
While there are no concrete plans yet, the meeting established the beginning of discussions about what to do with the purchase.
The current leases for the two theaters last until the end of March 2022.
“We really do want to find a use that’s going to work for us and work for you and the town,” Ruttner said. “That’s the end goal here.”
It appears that the Roslyn Bow Tie theater is closed. The marquee is blank and the lights are off.
Hilarious. These people bought the only artsy theaters in the area and shut em down and dont even know what they are going to do with them?! Fishing for ideas from the community? Are these serious investors?? Retail? are you kidding me, the bakery next to the manhassett theater recently closed doors and theres a couple vacancies across the street. retail in downtown manhasset and rosyln is depressed. Do you know how much you have to renovate a movie theater so it can become a hotel? A performing arts space? yeah right youll have to double the popcorn price from 5 to 10 dollars to cover all the nights there are no performances.
OMG my beloved theaters gone cause some crazy investors shut them down and have no clue what they are doing.
WHY close down both Manhasset and Roslyn Bow Tie theaters?? They definitely make money by showing unique, artsy, and independent-thinking movies/documentaries! My husband and I go there almost every other week and we are a young couple. If you are the new owner trying to make a big profit, PLEASE bring it back with MORE artsy and independent movies for the neighborhoods and mature audience, who don’t wana be brain-washed by commercial blockbusters. I assure you that there are lots of them in those neighborhoods. Last time I was there, the entire hall was packed! They are mature, respectful folks. Not crazy, loud, attention-deficit, brain-washed, greedy beings. Join me for the Prayers…
Hard to believe that investors bought properties with no idea what they’re going to do with them. To shut down a movie theater for a performing arts space that people will visit once in a while as opposed to weekly movies makes no sense. The theaters needed to be renovated. A hotel without parking doesn’t serve the community either. Shutting down the Manhasset Theater, Roslyn Theater, Great Neck Theater for sale, and the recent closing of the Port Washington Theater and Douglaston’s Movie World leave a very large area with almost no movie theaters.