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BayWalk proves a hit, despite some glitchesBy JIM VERHULST © St. Petersburg Times, published November 22, 2000 Wearing socks, sandals and shorts, I didn't intend to go undercover, disguised as a dad. I merely planned to take my family to our first movie at BayWalk. But after sitting through a matinee showing of Remember the Titans, I realized there are several things worth noting about the experience of two parents and their two children, ages 12 and 8, going to the new movies in downtown St. Petersburg on a Saturday afternoon. The top of the news? After sinking deeply into the plush stadium seats, watching the luscious screen and hearing the sound that surrounds, I probably won't go to a plain, old movie theater any time soon. The movies envelope your senses. The movies are a winner. Even my 8-year-old had a clear view of the screen. But I get ahead of myself. Here are some random notes and anecdotes told from the perspective of someone actually using BayWalk, not someone who is concerned about who owns the theaters or the garage or the stores. Our movie adventure began with an impromptu thought, as in, "Hey, let's go to the movies." That's not something we would have done before movies opened so near our home. We looked through the listings for a film that would engage the adults but still be suitable for our youngest son. We settled on Titans, starring Denzel Washington as the new football coach at a Virginia high school in the throes of its first year of desegregation. His team became a model for the whole school and community at how people can get along and become champions -- a decent movie and a good lesson. We checked movie times, decided on a 4:35 p.m. showing, and attempted to order tickets online at http://www.muvico.com. Hey, the ad in the paper said we could. But we couldn't. The Muvico Web site still had the BayWalk movies as "coming soon." That option was out. We then tried to order Muvico tickets by phone. However, after sitting through the usual numbing voicemail menus, I discovered there is a surcharge for phone orders. Annnkkkk! I'm too cheap for that. I opted for the old-fashioned route, to purchase the tickets in person. I drove down to the BayWalk box office and waited in line only a short time. But when I tried to buy our four tickets with American Express, the machine didn't work. The man behind the glass tried swiping the card forward, backward, fast and slow. No go. We switched to VISA. No luck. I then had to walk to the services desk inside the theater. But I was assisted immediately, the American Express card worked fine at this machine, and the woman behind the counter gave me a fistful of vouchers for popcorn and soda pop. I went back home, loaded up the family and headed back downtown. Next mission: Park in the new garage. The entrance on Second Street N is well marked, and two attendants directed cars quickly up the ramp. Weekend parking is free right now, but we still needed to punch the button to get a ticket to raise the arm barricading our way. The garage was so busy that the machine had run out of tickets. Judging by the molasses-slow serpentine line of traffic winding its way up the ramp, I came to a bold conclusion: People weren't used to the garage yet. Every time a car pulled in or out, it seemed to stem the flow of traffic in both directions. But that should improve as people get accustomed to the garage. It certainly was popular Saturday. People would inch their cars ahead and roll down their window at any passer-by to ask: "Are you leaving? Where are you parked? Can I have your space?" As you walk toward the exit, you have a magnificent view of BayWalk if you take the elevator, which has glass walls to showcase the complex. On Saturday, only one of the two elevators facing BayWalk was working, so we took the stairs down. They are a bit narrow for people to pass each other going up and down. (Tuesday afternoon, all elevators were operating.) Once on the ground level, you see a broad and expansive walkway leading you to BayWalk proper. Clearly marked pedestrian crossings make it easy to traverse Second Avenue N. But as traffic stops to let people cross, cars and SUVs quickly bottle up Second Avenue N between First and Second streets. I sense a budding traffic engineering challenge. Cross the street, make your way past the shops and enter the movie complex itself. It's very nice. Little touches, such as plenty of sinks in the restroom, abound. Because we were attending a PG movie, we didn't need to try out the child care room. Enter the theater itself, and if you've never been in one of these modern theaters, the first thing you notice is steps. To allow the clear view of the screen, the pitch is so great that steps, not ramps, are required. But the stairs are gently lit, so it's all quite safe. The theater itself is a sensory experience. I mean you really experience the movie. I cringed at some of the tackles. Everything just seems more real. One nit: Waiting for this excellent PG movie to start, we had to sit uncomfortably through a preview of a teen movie with muted scenes from strip clubs and multiple references to sex, sex, sex. The feature presentation was great for an 8-year-old. The preview was not. Parents see the whole package. The theaters should think of that, too, in deciding what previews to show. Our entertainment was pretty reasonably priced. With free snacks because it was opening weekend and free weekend parking for now, our total cost was $20 for four tickets. Good deal. After the movie, we wandered around a bit to look at what's open and what's still coming. It was energizing just to see so many people downtown. We made our way back to the garage and quickly found our car. As we left, we found one more fixable glitch. The garage needs clearly marked exits. (Help me, Mr. Wizard, I'm lost in a parking garage in downtown St. Petersburg!) When we left the garage after the movie, I didn't see any signs pointing us to a street exit until we were already nearly on the street. In a word, traffic engineers: Signage! A couple of large, well-placed signs would do wonders. The garage puts you quickly back on to First Street N, so traffic entering the garage and traffic leaving the garage never the twain do meet. Within five minutes, we were home. Great deal.
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