SAN CLEMENTE : Single-Screen Theater May Soon Be Triplex

Although the city has grown steadily over the years into a community of 43,000 people, the only movie screen in town is still found at the historic Miramar Theater, built in 1937 only steps away from North Beach.

But that may soon change under a plan by Miramar Theater owner Robert Ramos. He proposes to expand the single-screen, 600-seat, Spanish-style theater on North El Camino Real to include three screens with a total of about 525 seats.

Next door, in two rundown buildings that originally housed a bowling alley and gas station, Ramos wants to build a mercado and outdoor plaza, complete with an ocean-view restaurant and produce market. “It’s probably one of the key properties in San Clemente,” Ramos said. “But under the existing conditions, it’s just a white elephant.”

The two plans have already received approval from the Planning Commission and the Community Design Commission and are awaiting review by the California Coastal Commission this summer.

“There’s no doubt about it; there’s a need for it in the community,” said Ramos, who is seeking financial backing for the project.

“We’re going to be the place that will be happening,” he said. “I don’t know where we’re going to find the funds, but we’ll do it.”

For years, city officials have talked about the need for more movie screens in San Clemente. The closest multi-screen theater is about 10 miles away, in downtown San Juan Capistrano.

“We’re dying for somebody to locate a multiplex theater down here,” said community development director James Holloway.

In 1986, the city approved a commercial project, including a six-screen theater complex, across from Ocean View Plaza on Camino de Estrella, but the project fell through because of a lack of funding, officials said.

Only recently, under the ownership of Ramos, has the Miramar Theater been able to acquire first-run films, including “Cliffhanger,” “Last Action Hero” and the upcoming Clint Eastwood release, “In the Line of Fire.”

In years past, the theater had been used for everything from concerts to surf films, and many residents didn’t know from day to day if the theater was open or closed, Ramos said. “People just got alienated from it,” he said. “People didn’t think it was a legitimate movie theater. It’s taken a lot to get past that.”

If Ramos gets project funding and Coastal Commission approval, he hopes to open the new screens by year’s end.