LQ businesses anxious for theater opening

When Angelo Amodeo moved into the Washington Park Shopping Center in 2012 to open Bucatini Trattoria, he didn’t know if something would ever be built next door.

“It was nothing, it was an empty lot. A dirt lot,” Amodeo said.

Many businesses and nearby residents seemed to agree what was missing.

“We needed this movie theater. Right now you either have to drive to Indio or all the way down to The River,” said Callie Sbarbaro, who lives just across the street from where the theater has been built.

“La Quinta is great but we don’t have any theaters,” said Sheri Dettman, who owns a Sheri Dettman and Associates real estate office in the same shopping center.

Dettman expects the arrival of the 12-screen Century Cinemark Theater to increase real estate values in the area.

“They just need to keep moving forward and keep getting more tenants for the plaza,” Dettman said.

“I think it will only improve and bring more businesses to this area,” Amodeo said.

The city intended for the theater, set to open sometime in November, to create momentum for this central corridor of La Quinta. It appears it may be working. Not long after the theater debuts, In-n-Out and Chik-Fil-A are set to open on Highway 111.

“It helps our economy a lot. A lot of jobs will be created,” Sbarbaro said. “I think it’s wonderful.”

Amodeo says he feels lucky to have a front row seat to all the development and hopes the theater catapults the shopping center to becoming a focal point of La Quinta.

“It would make this center a destination,” Amodeo said. “We love the idea of having such an attraction next door, it’s a big plus.”