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March Opening Seen For IMAX
Progress
Progress is being made on the IMAX addition to Galaxy Theatres, which is set to open on March 25. VIRGINIA STILL/THE NEWS

 

Driving along Patterson Road in Riverbank, the Galaxy Theatre addition continues to take shape. The IMAX portion being added to the existing site has been under construction and will be a state of the art IMAX addition. The wall to wall screen with 3D technology that does not require glasses is scheduled to open on Friday, March 25, just in time for the highly anticipated opening of “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.”

“We have a great general contractor and we are quite pleased with the progress,” said Rafe Cohen, Galaxy President. “We are looking forward to the completion. We are excited about bringing the finest immersive cinematic experience available to our patrons which is the new IMAX theatre.”

There will be a grand opening of sorts when the IMAX is completed, according to Cohen.

With over 400 seats offered in the new IMAX along with a three-story screen over 70 feet wide the IMAX will also offer the same luxury seating as the other auditoriums. The entrance will remain the same along with the concessions, however guests will be able to exit the IMAX on the west side.

Galaxy was remodeled during the summer of 2014 to the luxury plus status and started offering beer, wine, and a few specialty food items as well as reserved seating.

This past September, Galaxy CEO Frank Rimkus gave a presentation on the progress of the IMAX theatre along with a few statistics regarding the new business opportunity.

He explained that for the last 15 years there have been over 400,000 visitors annually to see a movie at the Galaxy and in 2015 there was a projected 159 percent increase and currently the increase is at 167 percent, with the latest figures released in August. With the addition of the IMAX he believes that number will increase even more.

Recently, the theatre was awarded Business of the Year by the Riverbank Chamber of Commerce at the 53rd Annual Community Awards Banquet, with the honor presented to General Manager Nathan Paul by Anthony McKinney, Chamber President.

Members of the chamber nominated the businesses and the board made the final decision.

“I believe the IMAX will do its part to bring more attention and business growth to the Riverbank area and the theatre as a whole will continue to be a point of pride and enjoyment for the community,” stated Paul.