New Lewisville movie theater to bring more tax dollars

by Heather M. Goodwin of Star Local News

The Castle Hills Cinetopia will be the first in Texas.

In the near future, Lewisville could receive more sales tax dollars should a new economic development agreement be carried out.

Bright Realty, a real estate firm that is developing The Bridges at Castle Hills, recently executed a letter of intent with Cinetopia theaters to bring it to the Lewisville community of Castle Hills. The movie theater will be the anchor for The Bridges at Castle Hills. The estimated opening date is 2014.

"Generally, what's good for Castle Hills is good for Lewisville -- and this theater will be good for Castle Hills," said James Kunke, community relations and tourism director. "This will increase the activities offered in the city, and it gets Lewisville's name out there. The city will also receive a portion of the sales tax from the proceeds of ticket sales and such."

Cinetopia is being planned as a 70,000 to 80,000-square-foot theater equipped with 16 to 18 screens showing first-run movies and special screenings. Cinetopia theaters also feature digital super high definition projection that produces a higher resolution than HD TVs have. The theaters also have 7.1 digital surround sound systems while most theaters have 5.1 surround sound. The theater will also include a restaurant and wine bar with indoor and outdoor seating, as well as cinemas with both large capacities and those for smaller, more intimate screenings. The Castle Hills Cinetopia will be the first in Texas. The company currently has theaters in Portland, Ore., and Vancouver, Wash.

"We are pleased to have entered into an agreement to bring Cinetopia to Lewisville and The Bridges at Castle Hills," said Eric Stanley, Bright Realty managing director. "This luxury 'cinematic utopia' will be an impressive asset for the area, as well as an enormous draw for other high-end tenants and residents looking for luxurious living, working, retail and entertainment options in this quickly developing area."

In addition to the theater, The Bridges at Castle Hills will also offer state-of-the-art business conferencing and meeting facilities for private events. It will also have pedestrian-friendly entertainment and shopping as well as multi-family homes, green public spaces and office spaces. Plans include approximately 500,000 square feet of retail; 450,000 square feet of office space; a boutique hotel; and 1,000 apartment units within the mixed-use portion along with an additional 4,500 apartment homes adjacent to the site.

Castle Hills is located west of the Dallas North Tollway and Park Boulevard in between Lewisville and Carrollton. It is an extraterritorial jurisdiction of Lewisville, which means the city has the rights to annex the area when it wants to. Kunke said Lewisville plans to annex Castle Hills at a time when the Castle Hills debt is lower.

"Eventually Castle Hills will be annexed, but right now we do collect some sales tax from the area," Kunke said.