Thousand Oaks Discovery Center

Editor’s note: The Thousand Oaks City Council has committed $1 million toward construction of the proposed Discovery Center, which is scheduled to include an Imax theater.

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It seems that the Thousand Oaks City Council is the only organization in the country that has faith in Imax’s profitability. Certainly the stockholders don’t. Imax stock hit a low of $1.45 in recent weeks, from the high of $29 when the city approved a project last year; that’s a loss of 95%. And even as the stock plummets, the co-presidents of Imax gave themselves a $975,000 bonus. For what?

On July 3, Daily Variety reported that Edwards Theatres, which just came out of bankruptcy, is booting Imax out of its multiplexes because they weren’t profitable. The City Council in Cathedral City recently approved a second bailout with a $456,000 budget to continue operating its failing Imax theater. If Cathedral City had decided to close the theater, those costs would have exceeded $310,000. And if operations ceased, the city opened itself up to litigation from Imax Corp.

In their year-end report, Imax executives predicted further losses in 2001 but a return to profitability in 2002. Where have I heard that before? June 2000, at a town meeting regarding the Discovery Center Park project. An official at the time was saying that the Imax theater will be profitable within the first year of operation. I asked, “What if Imax doesn’t make a profit?” The reply was, “We hadn’t thought of that.” I wish they had. Maybe then the Discovery Center wouldn’t be the proud owner of a long-term lease with Imax costing millions of dollars.

Where’s our hands-on science center? Let’s get out of this ridiculous contract with Imax. It seems like everyone else is--why can’t we?

Ann Mathias

Westlake Village