Barrie Uptown Theater

Barrie Uptown Theater

Former names	Imperial 8 Cinema
Address	55 Dunlop Street
Location	Barrie, Ontario
Coordinates	44°23′19″N 79°41′29″W / 44.38856°N 79.69148°WCoordinates: 44°23′19″N 79°41′29″W / 44.38856°N 79.69148°W
Opened	1937
Website
barrieuptowntheater.ca

Barrie Uptown Theater (formerly Imperial 8 Cinema) is a movie theatre in downtown Barrie, Ontario, Canada. The cinema was built in 1937, and is home to the Barrie Film Festival. The building has 8 screens, though currently movies are only shown on 5.

The cinema was part of the now defunct Stinson Theatres chain. In February 2009, the Imperial 8 closed completely for several months. Citing structural problems, but also lack of parking, and declining ticket sales.^[1] It was later purchased by local businessman Mark Porter and reopened on November 27, 2009,^[2] under the rebranded 'Barrie Uptown Theatre', including a licensed bar and reclining seats. In December 2014, Porter announced intention to sell the building to developers.^[3]

References

1. "Imperial Cinema 8 closing its doors after long run in city's downtown".
2. "CITY COUNCIL UPDATE, 2009" (PDF).
3. "Barrie businessman says he's trying to stimulate interest in downtown".