By Dee Longfellow
For The Elmhurst Independent
In its July 2 issue, the Elmhurst Independent brought readers the news that York Theatre in downtown had finally opened again.
A ribbon-cutting and grand reopening took place on Friday, June 26, the first day of Phase 4 of Gov. JB Pritzker’s plan for reopening the state of Illinois.
Sadly, just two weeks later, the theater closed up again on Thursday, July 9.
Classic Cinemas announced last week that it would be closing all of its theaters following the last shows on Thursday, July 9. Besides Elmhurst, Classic Cinemas has locations in Carpentersville, St. Charles, Elk Grove Village, Downers Grove and Fox Lake.
The Downers Grove-based theater chain said in a Facebook post that it would close after Thursday’s shows. The Independent was told the closing it was mostly due to the lack of new releases.
“Thank you to everyone for being a part of the Classic Cinemas family — whether you patronized our theatres over the past few weeks, sent a kind note, or just thought about us,” a post read on Classic Cinemas Facebook page. “After much deliberation and with a heavy heart, Classic Cinemas has decided to temporarily re-close our locations after the end of business on Thursday, July 9.
“Our team took pride in implementing the health and safety protocols and received high marks for their efforts. Unfortunately, the lack of new movies and the extra costs have made our current business model unsustainable. We are in this for the long term so we look forward to welcoming you back just as soon as the outlook improves and new movies are released.”
Plans to re-open have not been announced.
