IMAX Theater to Anchor Old Town Movie Complex

Monrovia will be home to the San Gabriel Valley’s first IMAX movie theater, which shows specially-made films on 50-foot-tall screens.

The IMAX theater will anchor a 12-screen multiplex--approved by voters in March 1997--for the city’s Old Town neighborhood. To reduce the height of the building, city officials said, the IMAX screen will be sunk below ground.

The 52,000-square-foot cinema complex is expected to open next summer, officials said.

City Manager Don Hopper said the city backed the project as part of an effort to inject more life into the neighborhood. “The IMAX will make this a place for people to come from across the valley,” he said.