Over the summer, many students, local businesses, and other Lynbrook residents were excited over a new attraction to the town. The new Regal 13 RPX theater was highly anticipated by moviegoers looking for a convenient location for their favorite pastime and by local businesses looking to attract new consumers. Now, several months after the grand opening of the theater on June 17, are the local restaurants and stores basking in the attention of new consumers? Or, has the increased revenue flow ebbed away along with the hype that accompanies anything on the scale of the three-story theater. What effect, if any, is the movie theater having on local business? Local restaurants like Vincent’s, Angelina’s, and Sixteen Handles waited eagerly for the opening of the Lynbrook RPX and the predicted increase in commerce that a new movie theater would attract.

The idea that moviegoers would want to stop for a bite to eat at any of the restaurants surrounding the Lynbrook theater seems logical in theory, but real life does not follow such a formula. As with many things in such a complicated world, it is not that simple. Adelisa, General Manager of Sixteen Handles stated, “When the movie theater first opened, during the summer, there was a spike in customers, but recently, it has mainly been over the weekends.” This suggests that days that are more popular at the box offices, like weekends and vacations, equates to more business for businesses like Sixteen Handles. However, as stated previously, it is not that simple. Customers are not all Lynbrook residents, as many are people from outside of Lynbrook who are coming for the movies and staying local for a meal. Many locals, however, are more inclined to simply go for a movie and eat in the convenience of their own house. Sophomore Luke Maroney said, “I have seen four movies at the theater since it has been opened.” When asked if he has a restaurant that he frequents before or after a trip to the movie theater, Maroney said, “Not really, I usually just get a snack at the theater itself.”

Other students have different habits; sophomores Nick McNally and Daniel Beck both like to grab a bite nearby either before or after a movie. McNally said that his favorite locations are Vincent’s and Angelina’s. Beck said that he is partial to Angelina’s as well. Beck, however; when asked if he often eats at these restaurants on normal occasions other than related to seeing a movie he said, “I don’t see movies all that often, but my family does like to go out to eat occasionally.”

There were some concerns raised by Lynbrook residents that could affect families like the Beck family. One such issue is parking. The massive construction project that brought the Lynbrook theater into existence has taken up the small parking space that was used by patrons of the previous movie theater. Some were concerned that street parking would be so filled that it would cause traffic congestion. This would hurt local businesses because regular patrons, like the Beck family and others, would have trouble finding parking. However, when asked about the parking issue, Adelisa responded, “I haven’t noticed any issues with that myself.”

What does this all mean for local businesses in the area? The most likely answer from the information gleaned from both local businesses and students is that the movie theater has been attracting many new customers, many from out of town. The increased consumerism over weekends and vacations, which were categorized by Adelisa, are a result of customers driven to Lynbrook by the movies and who stay for the exquisite cuisine of Lynbrook restaurants. The movie theater has driven new customers to local businesses and provided entertainment for students.