The company that was going to build a movie theater in Manassas Park had second thoughts.
Cinema Cafe will no longer build a movie house to anchor the Park Central development, the new home of Manassas Park City Hall. The Hampton Roads-based cinema pulled out of the mixed-use development at 100 Park Central Plaza, next to the new Manassas Park City Hall and, soon, the city’s public library.
Cinema Cafe serves food and drinks similarly to Alamo Cinema and Drafthouse in Woodbridge. Potomac Local News was the first to report that, in January 2022, the city’s Governing Body sold about three acres of city-owned land to the cinema company for $100. In return, the Cinema Cafe was to build a theater, which would have been its first and only in Northern Virginia.
City Manager Laszlo Palko told Potomac Local News that inflation and the rising cost of construction materials are why the movie house pulled out of the deal. The city held the company harmless, despite the contract, because the city and the cinema were in a honeymoon-like discovery phase of the contract.
Palko said the company is still considering opening a new theater at Park Central. However, the building would be built by private developer Norton Scott.
The city is also negotiating with other entertainment companies that would show movies and provide room for special events. Palko would not disclose the addit0nal firms the city is talking with but said he plans to make an announcement about an anchor tenant by Christmas.
A new building isn’t expected until at least Summer 2024 because the city is waiting on the Virginia Railway Express to build a new parking garage for its commuter rail station adjacent to Park Central. Commuters will share the garage with Park Central visitors, according to an agreement the city has with the state’s only commuter railroad operation.
City leaders cut the ribbon on its new City Hall during a public festival on July 16, 2022. The $18.5 million building was constructed by private developer Norton Scott, which will serve as the landlord for 30 years.
After 30 years of lease payments, the city will own the building, according to Palko.
On September 11, 2022, the city plans to open its Library inside City Hall. City staff moved the Library from its original location in Blooms Park, the former General’s Ridge golf course.
The full-service Library provides digital books, audiobooks, and educational programs. The Library also provides computers, laptops, and Wi-Fi throughout the building.
Jirani Coffeehouse, a popular destination in neighboring Downtown Manassas, will open a second location at City Hall in March or April 2023, said Palko. The Library and coffee shop will complement each other, he added.
Jirani Coffeehouse owner Ken Moorman told Potomac Local News he originally wanted to open his shop in Manassas Park before opening his location in Downtown Manassas in 2016.
Potomac Local News first reported the Jirani expansion in May. The coffeehouse will lease the ground floor space for 10 years, with two optional renewal terms of five years each. The business will pay nothing for the first year. Afterward, The annual rent will be $6,500 for the second year, $13,000 for the third, reaching $39,000 for the 10th year, for $246,000.
Meanwhile, the City Hall is open for business. Residents may come inside to pay utility bills or meet with city administration or elected officials. The city’s Governing Body, its city council, held its first meeting inside the new building on August 23, said Palko.
A meeting video shows the new city council room and dais.
A splash pad on the plaza in front of the new City Hall building is incomplete. Palko asked for residents’ patience while they worked to turn on the water and, eventually, make the plaza a community gathering place.
*This story has been corrected to reflect the correct name of Cinema Cafe, which was reported as Cafe Cinema.
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