UGC City 2
Rue Neuve,
Brussels
1000
Rue Neuve,
Brussels
1000
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The Commercial Center City 2 was built in the 1970’s at the end of the street Rue Neuve in a block that included the department store "Le Bon Marche". It was on the site of several retail shops and two cinemas, the last one Crosly Nord closed in 1957.
The French circuit UGC built their first multiplex in this brand new commercial center, with 8 screens, also the FNAC was opened there. The UGC City 2 was opened in 1978. In 1988 when the multiplex Kinepolis was opened at Heysel with 24 big sceens with new technology as well as THX sound and bigger screens, the City 2 was not updated anymore. It began loosing business as the firm UGC had taken over the Eldorado Cinema, and they decided to restore it and make a modern multiplex on the Place de Brouckere, which is associated in Brussels with the 7th art. The group had also the Acropole Porte de Namur multiplex made out of the former Capitole Cinema and Acropole Cinema. This complex runs good with 2 million entrances a year, while Kinepolis had 3 million, and became the leading theatres in Brussels. With the reopening of the Eldorado Cinema which became UGC de Brouckere (now 12 screens) things were getting better, but the City 2 with only 25,0000 admissions was not viable anymore. The company finally closed it in 1994, and the UGC Acropole was restored and became UGC Toison d'or.
The UGC City 2 was pioneering because it was the first UGC complex in Belgium.
Contributed by
bette andré
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Recent comments (view all 2 comments)
I spent a lot of times in the City 2 complex when I lived in Brussels in 1979 but oddly enough only saw a couple of pictures here – Cross of Iron 2 and Return to the Poseidon…loved the look and feel of this American style multiplex but saw most of my movies uptown at the Acropole, Capitole and LeRoy complexes
This was a complex I really liked also and I am still rather amazed that it closed, given that the City2 complex is still very popular as a shopping venue. Always comfortable and with good standards. The transport links here were good also, with a metro stop and parking. It also seems that no serious immediate alternative use of the space was the cause.