Construction to resume this week on downtown movie theater

Published 8:00 am Tuesday, July 28, 2015

In spite of a “shocking” setback, the developer of the new Front Street movie theater says the project is far from fried.

Construction work on the interior of the former Mr. K’s Warehouse downtown is expected to resume this week. Crews will be building counter spaces and a space for an arcade area, in preparation for the electrical wiring of the single-screen theater building, said developer Ken Allen.

The work follows an extended delay and a temporary shutdown of the renovation project from the city, which was issued near the beginning of the year. The order was issued due to the fact that the electrician originally slated to handle the wiring of the building wasn’t property licensed in the State of Michigan, Allen said.

“We got that issue resolved, and came up with some new plans,” Allen said.

The snafu has set back the project by several months, past the summer date when Allen originally hoped to open for business, he said.

Allen, head of Forrest Fin LLC and a resident of Sister Lakes, has coordinated the efforts to transform the former retail location into a 128-seat move theater for nearly two years, with work beginning in September 2013. Much of the work to the theater location has been completed, with the seating, sound proofing, carpeting and woodworking finished.

The remaining work will focus mainly on the concession and arcade areas on the first floor, as well as building a small apartment complex located on the second.

“The arcade room will help us generate some additional revenue when we open, along with the three apartments upstairs,” Allen said.

When finished, the theater will sport a 12 by 18 foot movie screen, with a digital projector and sound equipment, Allen said.

While the project initially received grant money from state and federal agencies, the remaining costs are being covered out of pocket by Forrest Fin, including the projection equipment, which Allen estimates will cost around $97,000 to install.

“We will get it finished, no matter what it takes,” Allen said.

In spite of the recent challenges, the developer is still looking to have the theater open for business within the year, hopefully by Christmas, Allen said.

“I think people will find the theater quite nice when it’s finished,” he said.