Tampa complex cuts back on movies

Fearing a glut in new screens, Channelside's developers will reduce the number of theaters by a third.

By KYLE PARKS

© St. Petersburg Times, published July 7, 2000

TAMPA -- In a concession that the rush to build new movie theaters in the Tampa Bay area may be getting out of hand, the Channelside movie/retail/restaurant complex is downsizing its plans from 15 screens to 10.

The project, set to open in November, still plans 80,000 square feet for movies but will divide the space into larger areas, creating 10 Regal theaters of 200 to 500 seats each. Channelside also will have an IMAX giant-screen theater.

Making the move is not a sign that the downtown Tampa project is in trouble, said Gary Lewis, vice president of retail development for developer Hogan Group. It's simply a way to address changes in the movie business, he said.

"Everyone has been building these 24-screen multiplexes, and a lot of the smaller spaces in those theaters are empty a lot of nights," he said.

Despite continuing rumors that Channelside is in trouble, the development is 80 percent leased, Lewis said, including contracts with three new restaurants and an entertainment center that will offer such diversions as bowling and billiards.

Still, the movie screen downsizing may put Channelside at a disadvantage in its competition with the Centro Ybor complex a mile away in Ybor City. Centro Ybor will have 20 Muvico screens in its 79,000 square feet of theater space, opening in October.

"We'll be able to offer more movies and more times," said Jay Miller, senior vice president of Centro Ybor developer Steiner and Associates.

Across the country, developers are struggling with the fallout from theater overbuilding. In the Tampa Bay area, four 24-screen complexes have opened in the past six years, and five new multiplexes are under construction.

And bringing in moviegoers is a crucial component for success both for Channelside and Centro Ybor. Channelside is trying to lure people to the previously sleepy Garrison Seaport area, while Centro Ybor hopes to attract an older crowd to a district known as a party capital for 20-year-olds.

Developers of the two projects say both can succeed, but there are plenty of skeptics. The key may be how each one sets itself apart: Channelside as a place for families, especially at night, and Centro Ybor as an attraction for families during the day and young singles at night.

Hogan Group's Lewis has signed up a number of new tenants for Channelside, which has struggled to get deals done. The new restaurants are Rice Republic, Polcari Italian Cafe and a to-be-named theme restaurant run by Outback Steakhouse Inc.

The complex also will have a 35,000-square-foot entertainment facility called Ground Zero, Sloppy Joe's and Howl at the Moon bars, a Ron Jon Surf Shop and a Johnny Rockets hamburger joint.

Retailers will include coffee, fudge, ice cream and cigar shops, along with several upscale clothing stores. Lewis still is trying to land a bookstore and a music store.

The competition, Centro Ybor, will have a GameWorks entertainment facility. Restaurants include Big City Tavern, a place with brick walls and dark wood; Dish, a grill where food will be prepared in customers' view; and Mezzanotte, an upscale Italian restaurant.

It also will have Camelot Music, Brainfood Books, American Eagle Outfitters and other retailers, and an improvisational comedy club.

"The question continues to be, is there enough business to go around for both places?" said David Conn, senior vice president of retail for the CB Richard Ellis real estate company in Tampa.

That's a question to be answered after the facilities open, said Conn, who said Hogan Group's financing is sufficient to get Channelside going.

"Channelside isn't going to be some vacant pariah where it's never finished and the next owner comes in to level it," Conn said. "But both Channelside and Centro have big challenges because neither is near a big residential area. So the movies will be a big factor in how they do."

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