Posted: 5/15/02

FL theater will reopen in June

Cliff Buchan
News Editor

Twenty-three months after going dark, Forest Lakeís movie theater is about to regain life.

A new partnership has acquired a lease to the Lakes Cinema 5 building next door to Northland Mall and will open next month as Forest Lake 5 Theatre. The business will be owned and operated by partners Kent Rebeck and Loren Williams, two men who operate theaters in New Richmond, WI, Minneapolis and Brooklyn Center.

Rebeck says the new operation will concentrate on first-run films presented in a well run and professionally managed venue. A tentative opening date of Friday, June 14 is anticipated, Rebeck says.

The partners spent six months planning their Forest Lake venture. Tom Schuette, property manage for Azure Properties which handles the Northland Mall complex leasing, said lease terms were reached in April.

Williams, Rebeck and Rebeckís wife, Marlene, have been hard at work the past month cleaning the former Carmike operation which closed in June of 2000 after the parent company filed for Chapter 11 mortgage protection. Lakes Cinema 5 was stripped bare of all seats, projection and concession equipment.

The partners are now in process of painting the inside, installing new seats, screens, sound equipment, menu boards, outdoor movie showcases and projection equipment. All five auditoriums are seeing extensive work with three to receive digital sound systems.

ìWe feel the market is good in Forest Lake," said Rebeck, a former Forest Lake resident of more than a decade that now lives in New Richmond, WI, where he owns the New Richmond 6 Theatre. He said the goal is to restore the theater concept to Forest Lake and capture moviegoers who are forced to travel out of town to see movies.

ìWeíre hopeful of bringing them back,î he added.

Forest Lake 5 Theatre will be open every day of the year and matinees will be a central part of the operation. When school is not in session, an expanded matinee schedule will be offered. Show times will start at noon with the theater closing at midnight.

Partner Williams is involved in the two metro theaters. He owns the Riverview on 38th and 42nd St. Minneapolis and operates the Brookdale 8 at Brookdale Mall in Brooklyn Center. Combined, the men have two decades of experience in the theater business.

The partners plan to be active in the daily operation of Forest Lake 5 Theatre. Plans call for a dozen employees to be hired, including a site manager.

How well the new operation is received will determine future plans for Williams and Rebeck. If the operation is a success and supported locally, the partners believe expansion could take place.

That could mean doubling the size of the building and adding more screens and new seating styles.

ìCertainly the move would be toward stadium seating,î Rebeck said.

For now, the new owners are concentrating on getting the operation back in shape and ready to run. So far, they say, the comments from the public have been positive.

The June 14 opening is tied to a major national release date of summer films. ìThis summer is packed with product,î Rebeck said.

The owners are optimistic the business will do well with an operation that is run right and treats the public right. ìWe want to identify with Forest Lake,î Rebeck said.

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