Movie theater chain AMC has decided to close up operations of the downtown Buffalo Market Arcade 8 Theater on Main Street it moved into in 2018, at the end of December.
The decision came after months of negotiations between the chain and the building's owner Benchmark Group. At the center of AMC's challenges was slouching attendance, and overall decreased downtown foot traffic.
"[AMC] had the right to terminate, not enter their options after seven years, and so they've exercised that right, and they're going to leave," said Martin DelleBovi, director of real estate for Benchmark. "They indicated to me that since COVID and trying to recover from the lack of customers during that period of time, and then not building back up the customer base from 2019 to 2022 and then from 2022 to 2025, they just did not get the sales levels back up to where they were pre-COVID."
Benchmark and AMC had invested almost $9 million to revive the Main Street movie theater after it closed in 2014. Market Arcade was originally built in 1987, and over the years had struggling periods, with various owners and operators. AMC setting up shop in 2018 was hailed at the time as a major win.
"This is something that my administration worked with the Council on for a four-year period of time," then-Mayor Byron Brown said at Market Arcade's reopening in 2018. "There were some that said it couldn't be done and we're very proud today that movies have returned to downtown Buffalo. AMC is the largest movie theater chain in the world and they are a great partner to bring this movie theater into the downtown community."
Even with a large Main Street building going dark, DelleBovi believes Buffalo's Theater District is still in a great place to succeed.
"I think Shea's is really the main dog there, if you will, and I think that we were just the tail," he said. "So, our Theater District is thriving, and Brian Higgins is doing a tremendous job with Shea's. That would always be the driving force in our Theater District. The movie theater was, you know, an additional feature there, but the real leader here is Shea's."
AMC is expected to show its last movies at Market Arcade by the end of December, and then spend January removing its fixtures and property.
DelleBovi said it's still too early to know what's in store next for the theater, as he just became aware of AMC's decision late Tuesday night, but that Benchmark will, "go to work on it and see what exciting movements we can make that brings action back."
