By Editorial

Another plan for a downtown theater complex is being floated through Los Altos government channels. But like the last theater proposal, this one poses just as many questions.

The new concept targets Parking Lot C, located where Bandera restaurant is, facing San Antonio Road. What’s being talked about now is a six-to-seven screen theater complex that could show first-run movies and art films. Discussions center on an 18,000-square-foot complex with about 950 seats. With a theater this size, the city could lose about 70 parking spaces. Cost of the theater, not including land or parking improvements, would be about $4.5 million. City officials are working on requests for proposals to lure potential developers.

The location is an improvement from the previous plan, the city-owned corner of Main and First streets, which was little more than three-quarters of an acre. This site allows better access to a main thoroughfare in San Antonio.

However, several complex questions must be addressed. The city owns the land, but the merchants funded the parking lot through an assessment district formed back in the 1950s. The city would have to bring all the merchants on board or refund business owners for the land. We think the developer should pay for the land on a competitive basis.

The loss of 70 spaces is too much, considering a theater could draw hordes of customers and Bandera remains a huge draw for evening diners. We see a need for more, not less parking, but underground parking will prove very costly.

What will be the real impacts on the downtown as a result of the theater? Will the village makeup be changed in any way? How will it benefit surrounding retailers, if at all? Answers at this early stage are unclear.

The theater could be a boon to evening restaurants who claim business is slow because there is little downtown to attract customers after 5 p.m. On the other hand, a theater could pave the way for fast-food establishments often strategically located near theaters since the demographics of moviegoers tends toward the young set.

The size of the theater is another big question. A seven-screen theater sounds quite large and out of scale with the surrounding area. However, we understand economics plays a huge issue here. Small one- or two-screen theaters that might fit in well with the village atmosphere probably wouldn’t profit and may go under after a few years.

So what is the balance between proper size versus economic reality?

Finally, a “subsidy” for the theater by the city seems unfair to other businesses since the only sales tax revenue from a theater operation is on the sale of snack food.

We like the idea of a theater. But there are always hard questions that must be addressed for the good of our unique downtown.