Santa Cruz Cinema
1405 Pacific Avenue,
Santa Cruz,
CA
95060
1405 Pacific Avenue,
Santa Cruz,
CA
95060
2 people
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The new nice seats with food trays for the first time are almost finished in all 9 auditoriums as of May 26 2025. New bathrooms almost ready. New rugs will be going in next. The red neon on the lobby ceiling has been replaced with a flamingo orange type color LED. You can kiss the boxoffice out front on Pacific Ave goodbye soon, going to be torn out. They never have anyone inside anymore selling tickets. Machines will be put outside and in the lobby. I noticed more hot food being sold at the refreshmsnt counter these days. Probably the same things the Syufy family sells at their ‘West Wind’ Drive Ins. I hear they may install the ScreenX system in the cinema #3 or #4 space. This will be a first for the college town of Santa Cruz CA. Maybe If It goes over at the extra price of admission they will also do a 4DX install in space #1 or #2? I had thought they would put in a digital marquee outside on the former covered up plastic letter neon sign marquee. Has been covered up from a big wind storm many years ago when Regal leased the former Signature Cinema. They miss advertising space outside to let people on the street see what is playing inside. It will be so great when It is finished as the Syufy family under ‘West Wind’ Drive Ins does not have many indoor theatres still around so they can spend that money they rake in from all the malls they own on former drive in lots here at the Santa Cruz 9 Theatre.
The red neon sign above the candy counter that said REFRESTMENTS fell last month off the mirror and broke. Almost hit a popcorn server. Mark the manager tells me they are having the sign re made. The West Wind Syufy gang is spending money to fix up the place. A good tax rite off for them as the Syufy’s mainly own malls these days were their former drive Inns were. West Wind had to buy a new ice machine also they are re doing the lobby elevators and a new LED marquee will be coming soon. New laser projectors have been put in space #3 & #4. They are replacing the light bulbs in the marquee tower to color LED bulbs. Hope new glow rugs will be put in soon and some neon lobby ceiling lights repaired. Santa Cruz needs a 4DX or Screen X installation this is the cinema to have them in downtown Santa Cruz CA.
Thanks to the Syufy family at West Wind Drive In’s for taking over the old Regal Cinema 9 in downtown Santa Cruz. After being closed for a year Regal moved out. Syufy still kept many of their old outdoor theatres under the ‘West Wind’ brand now It seems the two Syufy brothers are getting back into the indoor cinema business back again in Santa Cruz CA after selling their Century Theatres to Cinemark many years ago. Their dad Raymond made a fortune when he sold off many of the drive in land outdoor theatres to build malls with indoor cinemas on the same spot the old drive In’s played films. Lets hope the tourist and college local crowd will support the Syufy ‘West Wind’ Santa Cruz 9 Theatre in downtown Santa Cruz CA. Regal never bothered to even advertise. I think the Syufy family will change things around in Santa Cruz moviegoing for the better!
This theater reopened on THU 3/25, operated by the same people that operate West Wind Drive-Ins.
This theater reopened briefly after the initial shutdown, closing again around 10/8/2020.
Sad news like so many movie theatres the Regal 9 Santa Cruz CA has closed for good. Lets hope some new movie theatre people can move in as Regal has pulled the plug after being closed almost a year! This is a college tourist town so some new circuit will do well when they re open If it remains a movie theatre. Regal in my opinion wrecked the seating a few years ago by putting in huge recliners and taking away too many seats. There are 3 large type spaces inside this now closed downtown Santa Cruz CA Theatre just ripe for a first for Santa Cruz IMAX, Screen X, 4DX or a large curved screen plus food service. The other 6 auditoriums are very small but good for art type movies. The only other cinema in town is run by Landmark the DelMar 3 and The Nick Theatres they play mainly art type fare and are temp closed. Time for Alamo, Maya or CineLux Theatres to take over this prime spot, a great location downtown when movies can open again soon! Please change from open to closed. The front marquee was blown off last year during a wind storm so whoever takes over this former cinema they will have to replace as Regal did nothing about It.
Good news the new manager ‘Kyle’ will again start putting up on the giant neon marquee what is playing in side the Regal 9. The retro nice plastic letters have been missing the last month. A new letter changing pole is on It’s way to the cinema. No more lift each week to change all the letters on the marquee. This will take a little longer but may be safer to use. The movie times for this cinema will soon also be in the Good Times free magazine each week again. Now when you go by the giant lighted sign you can see what is playing and buy a ticket.
New seating capacities at this theater following the installation of Regal’s new “king-size” recliners (via Fandango’s reserved seating service):
Theater 1 – 77 seats
Theater 2 – 79 seats
Theater 3 – 115 seats
Theater 4 – 147 seats
Theater 5 – 45 seats
Theater 6 – 48 seats
Theater 7 – 83 seats
Theaters 8 & 9 – 55 seats
This opened on May 19th, 1995. Grand opening ad in photo section.
The Santa Cruz 9 was designed by the San Francisco architectural firm Uesugi & Associates, which did quite a bit of work for the Signature Theatres chain before it was taken over by Regal.
The vertical sign tower of this theatre, while a completely original and unusual piece of metal scultpture and neon, nods its head slightly to the 1930s tower which was once on the “old” Santa Cruz Theatre down the street (1920, remodeled 1939, changed to office and retail by the 1970s). The crescent moon on one side of the Santa Cruz 9’s sign tower and the star on the other side, as well as the stepped structure crowning the tower pay tribute to motifs on the old tower applied during the 1939 remodeling of the earlier theatre.