210 Trade | EpiCentre

[uptownliving]

The developer is still saying there will be a movie theatre and if you go on site you can see the section with 20 ft ceilings that is currently being built and corresponds to where the movie theatre is going.

[AuLukey]

I'm not sure how they're building that section yet if they are still working on the actual ground floor level right now.

If this was a suburban project, I would assume the movie theater would be nixed; but I feel the short supply of theaters around uptown (in comparison to the rest of the city) will help meet the need for those living (and soon to be living) in and around uptown.

I think that movie theaters' biggest problems right now are the household accessibility of free movies over the internet and the fact that most people can now afford close-to-theater-quality visual and audio equipment to mimic a true theater. A 50-inch HDTV and Blu-Ray disc player (1080p, full High Definition) can be nearly the same as sitting in the back row of a real theater. The problem will come with uptown dwellers having neighbors stacked around them in every direction that may not appreciate the theater-like quality of high end surround sound systems. So unless you live in either a sound-insulated condo/apartment or a house with a large side yard, there is no way to truly copy the theater experience.

Wow I went way further into that than I had hoped to. To make a long story short, I feel that a theater will still do good in our uptown environment despite the whoas of other cinemas country-wide.

[dubone]

I think many theaters are closing because the suburbs are saturated with them, so older ones with older technology and depreciated facilities go under. A brand new, fairly small theater in a location without another cinema (other than a very small indy theater) for 5 or 6 miles is likely to do okay.

Anyway, the developer and Dougie have been fairly consistent that it is in. It has only been rumors on UP, and the omission of the theater from some descriptions of the projects in a few articles that have led to the pessimism. Now that they appear to actually be building it, and the developer is still promising it to neighborhood groups, I'd say it is in.

Whether it is successful or not is another question, and only reality will determine that. But their lack of competition, and the fact that the intown market is underserved, it does seem conceivable that they will succeed.

EDIT: I must say that I have a 50" HDTV with an HD-DVD player, and it is not equal to a movie theater. But at least it is close enough that I don't drive out to the burbs to watch a movie. But I would certainly go to a movie every once in a while if it were in walking distance.

[monsoon]

The developer is still saying there will be a movie theatre and if you go on site you can see the section with 20 ft ceilings that is currently being built and corresponds to where the movie theatre is going.

So is there an operator annouced for this theatre?

[dubone]

I have heard rumors that it will be a local operator and not a national operator. I have heard the same rumors about the bowling alley that was planned here, too.

But rumors don't always pan out, so we'll just have to wait and see.

[DigitalSky]

Who are some local operators of movie theaters and bowling alleys?

[uptownliving]

I'm not sure how they're building that section yet if they are still working on the actual ground floor level right now.

The movie theatre is going in a seperate building from the retail. It is right by the Lynx line on 4th St. You can see it on the webcam.

[jednc]

Ha Ha...there are those on here who will say they doubt a movie theater will be built at The Epicentre even as they are standing in line to buy a movie ticket at that theater. Incredible!

I see that some of the ones who said it would never be built are now switching the moaning to "it won't last".

I'll bet you guys are fun on a date...

[uptownliving]

This was already rumored but the CBJ is now reporting that First Charlotte Physicians will move into 12,000 sq ft of space at the EpiCentre in 2008. This is twice the size of their current office in Founders Hall.

[revitalize]

Is First Charlotte Physicians on the ground floor of Founders Hall? does this mean that Founders Hall might be opening up a bit so that street level retail can be retro-fit onto College and Trade St's? I really hope so...

[Charlotte_native]

Who are some local operators of movie theaters and bowling alleys?

Not sure about theaters, is Manor locally owned/operated? Pappas is a local operator/owner of bowling alley's.

[atlrvr]

The Manor was owned by Eastern Federal until they got sold to Regal.....I don't know if Meisenheimer kept the Manor for its real estate or not.

I believe Pappas was private for a while, but now is a franchise of a national chain....not sure though.

[Charlotte_native]

The Manor was owned by Eastern Federal until they got sold to Regal.....I don't know if Meisenheimer kept the Manor for its real estate or not.

I believe Pappas was private for a while, but now is a franchise of a national chain....not sure though.

He, Pappas, was quoted recently about one of his bowling alleys and whether he would go smoke-free...i assumed from that that he was still involved. Didn't know he had gone much further than regional.

Interesting when googling "pappas and bowling". There is a George Pappas that is a national champ bowler and a George Pappas that owns lanes in and around Charlotte. Same guy i suppose?

[uptownliving]

For local theatre operators I would throw out Consolidated, and the group that runs the Ballantyne Village Theatre.

[uptownliving]

Is First Charlotte Physicians on the ground floor of Founders Hall? does this mean that Founders Hall might be opening up a bit so that street level retail can be retro-fit onto College and Trade St's? I really hope so...

Yep they are on the ground floor on the College/Trade corner. From what I have heard, getting First Charlotte to move is a major step in being able to open up Founders Hall to the street.

[poplife88]

For local theatre operators I would throw out Consolidated, and the group that runs the Ballantyne Village Theatre.

I had a conversation with one of the employees at the Ballantyne Village Theater and it is owned by a Texas businessman who owns several independent theaters around the country. Maybe he could be in the mix for the Epicenter theater as well.

[nowensone]

Independent would be great, though more expensive, otherwise an Edwards would be best IMO. Whatever it is, should be something that is unique in it's design, and so goes beyond mere "theatre" that everyone sees mass-produced across the country.

[uptownliving]

The condo tower portion of this project which has laid dorment for a couple of months has now seen some activity. They have started pouring concrete for the floors there.

Good to see that now this entire project is moving full steam ahead.

[monsoon]

I was chatting with another forumer last night and they pointed out that it appears via the web cam that looks down on this, they are building the some of the tower now.

[Focusmaster]

I was chatting with another forumer last night and they pointed out that it appears via the web cam that looks down on this, they are building the some of the tower now.

Not only that but if you look at the webcam right now you can see that they have cleared out the piles of buildings materials and put down the beginnings of what looks to be the first floor of retail. I'm wondering when they are going to have another night of pouring concrete.

[monsoon]

Seems to me there are issues with pouring concrete when it gets as cold as it's getting at night these days in Charlotte.

[DigitalSky]

yeah it's been way too cold!! especially w/ wind chill in the teens and single digits. ouch.

[AuLukey]

Seems to me there are issues with pouring concrete when it gets as cold as it's getting at night these days in Charlotte.

I wonder why they have slowed yet The Avenue is still going full steam despite the weather.

[UrbanCharlotte]

Avenue pours during the days. I suspect sunday into monday or monday into tues they'll pour a lot more concrete. Next week we should also see rebar/concrete goin up for the next floor.

[dubone]

Based on urbancharlotte's latest construction photo update: http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/9757/do...wn129035dg3.jpg

There are two points I notice based on the current photo. First, it appears that despite the renderings showing a blank wall between the door to the parking deck and the corner of Trade and College, there seems to be an opening to the deck that will hopefully just be filled with glass or a grate. It isn't great, but it is better than a concrete wall. (I sure hope, given its current state, that they don't prove me wrong and end up filling it in.)

Second, the retail spot at the curve in (at the far left of the linked photo) is TINY. Now, I personally like projects to put retail in little nooks and crannies rather than, say, a janitor closet, or a couple parking spaces. But this is actually the only retail at the street level of Trade, and I was hoping it extended farther into the parking deck. But still, something like a coffee shop doesn't need that much indoor floor space, and it could actually be built around mostly outdoor seating and 'to go' customers.

Also, now that I see that how much space in the parking deck is actually at street level for the descending elevation of Trade, there really should be one more retail space there, taking up the half dozen parking spaces that would go there. I didn't agree with Metro in the previous thread on this point, as I believed it to be just a sliver of a space, too short to fit retail, but in reality, it could fit retail for most of it. We should write letters to Ghazi trying to convince him to do just that. I'm sure the revenue associated with street facing retail literally across the street from Ritz Carlton should be enough to cover a change order. Who knows, though, maybe he already plans it. The height and openness of that section does seem quite different from the renderings.