Since 2009, Crossroads Mall Partners, led by Sid Weiss, has worked to turn the former mall into a retail, medical and entertainment destination. Sales taxes from its stores contribute significant revenue to the city’s $9 million annual budget.īut ownership gives Balcones Heights more control over Wonderland’s viability and some assurance regarding that revenue, said city leaders in 2021. The 650,000-square-foot mall, built in 1961, occupies a large swath of the 1-square-mile municipality. Wonderland is key to Balcones Heights’ future. “That’ll be our homage back to the Bijou and a way for us to still help independent and art films,” Brooks said. That plan will be launched this summer with independent films shown throughout the Santikos chain of theaters, which now includes two formerly operated by Alamo Drafthouse Cinema - at Westlakes on San Antonio’s far West Side and in New Braunfels. “That’s why we came up with the Bijou Art Series Plan.” “We just have not been getting the new art films in and so we were working on a plan on how to expand the art film across our fleet,” Brooks said. There had been rumors that the theater would close permanently, Nastasi said.īut Santikos’ leadership dealt the final blow only several weeks ago, ending its 35-year run at Wonderland, said Andrew Brooks, executive director of sales and marketing at Santikos. Like with most movie houses, attendance was low, largely because few new films were being released. The theater went dark in March 2020 at the start of the pandemic and reopened later that summer. The decision by Santikos not to renew its lease at Wonderland did not come as a surprise, he added. “We have some new prospects that I think take care of, and make it even more profitable,” Nastasi said. In addition, the Wonderland partnership is in talks with tenants for the space, but Nastasi declined to name them before a deal is signed. “I’m very optimistic for that reason.” The Wonderland of the Americas mall originally opened in 1961. “This property has weathered bigger impacts than the Bijou shutting down,” Nastasi said. And “sometimes, forced changes can be a good thing,” said Lorenzo Nastasi, director of development and public affairs for Balcones Heights. Santikos owns and operates 10 theaters in the San Antonio area.While other malls have been gutted, shuttered or reinvented, Wonderland keeps bouncing back, James Bond-style. “These are exciting times for Santikos, we opened two new theaters this year, Santikos New Braunfels and Santikos Westlakes, we just finished a remodel of our IMAX auditorium at Palladium, we have plans to announce future developments and remodels later this year, and we remain the most financially sound theater operator in the country,” Brooks said. Starting this summer, “Bijou Series” art films will be shown across all Santikos theaters. Santikos will continue to support independent filmmakers and art films. “We’re also pleased to continue serving the Balcones Heights community with our Santikos Northwest Theater, located just across the highway, less than 1 mile away from the Bijou,” Brooks said. Santikos has operated the Bijou since December 1987.īrooks said while the company is sad to announce its closing, they’re excited about the future of Santikos. “It’s this changing dynamic of art films, and our lease coming up for renewal that led to the decision to close The Bijou,” Brooks said. “There was a record bidding war between Amazon, Netflix and Apple, and Apple won with a $25 million purchase.”Īs art films are exploring new ways to be profitable and gain exposure, it’s not always going to mean that they get shown in traditional theater settings. “‘CODA’ which won Best Movie (at the Oscars) was allowed to play in our theaters for only one week prior to opening on Apple,” Brooks said. The theater was located at Wonderland of the Americas in Balcones Heights.Īndrew Brooks, the executive director of sales and marketing for Santikos, confirmed the closure on Tuesday, saying the closure was due, in part, to the changing art-film dynamic during the COVID-19 pandemic. BALCONES HEIGHTS, Texas – The Bijou theater, San Antonio’s arthouse theater, is closing its doors after 35 years.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |