Pierce County movie theaters prepare for eventual reopening during COVID-19 pandemic
Movie theaters in Tacoma have been closed for nearly six months. One local theater, Galaxy Theatres in Gig Harbor, is intent on opening, no matter what it takes.
“It’s been kind of stressful and been kind of a waiting game about when we are allowed to reopen,” Galaxy Theatre general manager Kim May said. “We can’t wait to get everyone back to the theater.”
Galaxy Theatres spent the past six months updating the theater for new health and safety guidelines. Management has bought masks for guests who don’t have them, face shields, gloves, new, high-level air filters for the tears, and air purifiers for the lobbies and hallways.
They plan to staff every other concessions line and have every other urinal, bathroom stall, and sink available. They have also bought electrostatics misting machines that will sanitize the entire building each morning.
While the theater is expecting to open when Pierce County reaches Phase 3 of its SafeStart plan, it will only be allowed to have 25% capacity, and few new movies are being released at the moment.
“We don’t even know what content we’ll be opening with, but they [Hollywood] are kind of playing a waiting game as well,” May said. “We might play some older content and flashback movies. Galaxy will be here as soon as we can open.”
For other local cinemas, like the Grand Cinema downtown, the managers have decided that the revenue from 25% capacity would be too low to offset reopening costs.
“We could lose more money trying to be open than by being closed,” Executive Director Philip Cowan elaborated. “Once we get to Phase 3, we’ll have a better feel for what the economy is, but keeping our customers safe is more important than anything else.”
To stay in businesses even while being closed, the Grand Cinema has been relying on community donations, small business grants, and a small amount of revenue from virtual screenings to cover rent, employees’ health insurance, and some employee salaries.
Cowan said the summer is usually a slower season for the cinema, while the winter months usually see their highest numbers. While he feels the business is fine now, he’s worried about how big the financial impact will be if they have to stay closed during their busy season.
Both theaters are grateful for the support the community has shown them in the past months, and they encourage Pierce County residents to support local businesses during these times.
Along with having movie-goers in the theater, May said she misses their work in local schools.
“We miss our community, we miss our guests, and we can’t wait to offer a much-needed escape to our guests right now,” she added.
This story was originally published August 27, 2020 at 1:46 PM.