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A new movie theater is trying its luck at Westfield Wheaton Shopping Center, this time without the alcohol and live entertainment but with an added independent flair.
Montgomery Royal Theater will play first-run and indie films on six theater screens in a venue that not long ago served up drinks, food and flicks as the Montgomery Cinema ‘N' Drafthouse, a sit-down food-and-drink movie theater that closed just two-and-a-half months after it opened at the mall during last year's holiday season.
The abrupt closing of the one-of-a-kind theater shocked area residents, many of whom doubted a local theater could be profitable in downtown Wheaton. The Drafthouse closed in December 2008 for financial reasons and spats with mall officials, said owner Greg Godbout, who declined to detail his concerns.
But nevertheless, Royal Theater is slated for a soft opening later this month at its 11006 Veirs Mill Road location. A grand opening — complete with free popcorn — will be held some time before Christmas, said Sidney Woods, Westfield Wheaton's customer service and promotional manager.
Despite the demise of the Drafthouse, Woods said the mall is confident a theater can thrive in Wheaton.
"The mall has a history of having movie theaters," he said. "That's something the community has always requested."
Royal Theater is owned by area resident Sunil Maximus, who has been in the theater industry for more than 20 years, Woods said. He was the general manager for the P&G Wheaton Plaza Theater, which closed its location at Westfield Wheaton in 2008 and was replaced by the Drafthouse.
If all goes well, Royal Theater could prove there's a market for independent, small screens in Wheaton after all, said Natalie Cantor, the director of the Mid-County Regional Services Center.
"Some of the larger chains have said that we're ‘too close to Silver Spring,'" Cantor wrote in an e-mail to The Gazette. "I never agreed with that; there is no other movie theater going up Georgia Avenue all the way up to Howard County."
Wheaton's newest theater will sit just miles north of the famed AFI Silver Theater and Cultural Center on Colesville Road in downtown Silver Spring, which screens many independent films, as well as the more mainstream Majestic Theater on Ellsworth Drive.
Cops deserve credit, too
On a day last week when much of the community paused to honor military veterans, the Kiwanis Club of Wheaton-Silver Spring turned to another form of public service to express its appreciation.
Two county police officers from the 3rd and 4th districts were honored for their bravery in the line of duty at the Wheaton-Silver Spring Kiwanis Club's annual Officer of the Year awards, held Nov. 11 at the Kiwanis Club on Forest Glen Road.
Recognition such as this doesn't come as often as it should from the community, said Kiwanis Club president Helen Williams, so providing police officers a free lunch and a plaque was the least the community-service organization could do.
"What people don't realize is that police are our first responders," she said.
The courage to jump into danger to keep a community safe is something 4th District Officer Brendan Johnston demonstrated exceptionally well when he ran down an armed felon who had been lurking in the Leisure World retirement community in September, said 4th District Deputy Cmdr. Jacques Croom, who selected Brendan for the award.
Also recognized at the luncheon was 3rd District Officer Mauricio Veiga, who was off-duty in plain clothes when he happened on a fight between two groups of teenage girls on Cedar Street and Ellsworth Drive in Silver Spring. One of the girls in the fight swung and thrust a knife at the others. Before she could hurt anyone, Veiga drew his weapon and confronted her. She fled, but Veiga chased her down and apprehended her.
"Officer Veiga acted decisively and courageously by intervening in a knife assault that could have resulted in serious injury or death," said Lt. Paul Liquorie, the deputy commander for the 3rd District. He also put himself in more danger by acting without his police equipment, Liquorie said.
Both officers appreciated the awards.
"It's not why I do the job, but it's nice to know there are people who appreciate what you do on a daily basis," Brendan said. "A lot of the time you only read the bad stuff [about police officers.]"