Fox Valley Theaters
4001 Fox Valley Center Drive,
Aurora,
IL
60504
4001 Fox Valley Center Drive,
Aurora,
IL
60504
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Built as a quad in the mid-to-late-1970’s at the Fox Valley Center mall, the theater was originally part of the Plitt Theatres chain of Chicago. In the mid-1980’s, the theater was increased to six screens. By the late-1980’s, the theater was taken over by the Cineplex Odeon chain. Around this time, three more screens were opened in another building, bringing the Fox Valley Center’s total screens to ten.
In 2000, the theater was closed after Cineplex Odeon’s bankruptcy troubles, but the original six screen theater was reopened in 2002 by the Village Theatres chain but was closed once more a year later.
One of the two theater buildings has been converted into a sports bar. The other was demolished in early 2007.
Contributed by
Bryan Krefft
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Recent comments (view all 4 comments)
Fox Valley is about to get it’s theatre back. That’s right, Kerasotes Theatres will begin construction soon on ShowPlace 12 at Fox Valley Center. It is slated for 2005. Check their full list of projects here at: http://www.kerasotes.com/AboutTheaters.aspx
BTW, Plitt opened Screens 7-10 in December 84.
There are two former theatre buildings in Fox Valley Mall. Both are off on the edge of the parking lot in the southwest corner. One has been gutted and turned into The Foundry (a large sports bar). The other, which I believe is the original building, is sitting there silently. You can make out the outline of “Plitt Theatres” where the electrical sign was once mounted. It is easy to miss unless you know it is there, because it sits on it’s own distinct parking area.
It is interesting to note that these early mall theatres, which surpassed the classic cinemas of the inner cities, have themselves been surpassed by larger facilities with stadium seating.
The larger (orignal) Fox Valley Theater is being demolished. Demo work started this week, and if I had to guess…it will be reduced to nothing by the end of the week.
Looks like we can post pictures, so I will try and remember to stop and take one of the demo in progress on my way home from work tonight.
This was one of at least four 1970s multi-screen theaters designed for Plitt Theatres by the Chicago architectural firm of Finck, Stowell & Frolichstein. The others were:
Cherryvale Mall Cinema, Rockford, Illinois.
Orland Square Cinemas, Orland Park, Illinois.
Hawthorne Theatres, Vernon Hills, Illinois.