BLACKSBURG (WSLS 10) - The first showings of movies at the Frank Theatres CineBowl & Grille, including the highly anticipated IMAX theater, began Monday.Â
Only the theater side of the complex opened, but once it's fully operational it's expected to draw quite an audience.
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Justin Owens was there, picking up tickets for an upcoming movie. He wanted to get his tickets early because they may go quickly.
"Because it's Avengers 2," he said. "They're all going to be sold out for weeks probably. Got to get good seats for that."
Avengers 2 is more than a month away from its May 1 opening, but the theatre, often referred to as the IMAX, is open.
"Seeing it go up, it didn't look nearly that big from the outside. It's impressive," Owens said.
The theater was slowly coming to life, leading up to an invitation-only grand opening Thursday, followed by its official opening Friday.
"First & Main has needed an anchor for sometime time," said shopping district owner David Street.
The complex has been a long time in the making. When Street bought the property two and a half years ago, he decided on creating an entertainment complex unlike Blacksburg or Southwest Virginia have seen before.
"We feel that this is going to be a great entertainment center for both the students at Virginia Tech and Radford but also for the region in general from the Bluefield, Princeton area down toward Wytheville to our friends in Roanoke and in Lynchburg," Street said.
The draw is the movie theaters; 11 theaters including the IMAX, all with theater seating. Movie-goers will be able asked to reserve seats with each ticket purchase online.
There is also a stadium theater for groups, allowing multiple event viewing on projection screens adjacent to the full restaurant and bar. Franks expects to get its liquor license soon.
Next to the bar and restaurant, patrons can find bowling. There are 18 lanes with there large screens above the pins as well.
Upstairs, you'll find an arcade with dozens of options.
"We're excited for what it's going to do for First & Main and for what it's already done," Street said.
The theater, even before its official opening has already breathed new life into First & Main. Zoe's Kitchen and Starbucks announced they were each opening a location. They'll be located on either side of the main entrance to the shopping district. Street says other openings are in the works as well.
"We feel it's going to be a game changer for Blacksburg," street explained.
Frank Theatres CineBowl & Grille has employs 103 workers. Nearly 50 additional positions including hosts, bartenders, servers, cocktail waitresses, kitchen staff and dishwashers will be filled.