Hawthorne Multiplex to Close After Monday’s Movies

Moviegoers reacted with disappointment, surprise and resignation  to the closing of the All Westchester Saw Mill Multiplex Cinemas in Hawthorne after 30 years of operation.

The 2,300 seat, 10-screen theater located at 151 Saw Mill River Rd., will  show movies for the final time today (Monday), before making way for a new Audi car dealership. No date has been set for the start of construction. On Saturday there was no hint that the building will be torn down.

The dealership will be more than 67,000 square feet and include vehicle service facilities.

Several messages left for National Amusements, the theater’s owner, dating back several weeks were not returned. All of the employees at the multiplex who were sought for comments said they weren’t willing to be interviewed.

However, most patrons reacted with sadness that a popular location to see movies the past three decades will no longer be an option, including Congers resident Sabrina Riccoboni.

“I was just saying to the manager I’m awfully sad because I love movie theaters and I’ve been going here for a long time,” she said. “I don’t enjoy going to movie theaters in malls. So it is tough to find an alternative but there’s the Shops at Nanuet as a backup I guess.” Pleasantville resident Sarah Duffy also said the theater would be missed. She said she has many good memories of coming to the multiplex, including seeing her first movie, “The Santa Clause,” in 1994 as well as friends’ birthday parties that were held at the cinema.

“I used to go here all the time when I was younger,” Duffy said.

“It’s really too bad. It’s an easy theater to get to and we’ve been coming here a long time,” Ardsley resident Jamie Greene added.

Greene’s husband, David, said closing the Hawthorne theater would reduce competition and translate to more crowded theaters elsewhere.

“I always like more choice and better availability,” he said.

Pleasantville resident Anna Maria Marfione said she was surprised the theater was closing.

“We never hear anything. I didn’t read about anything,” she said. “I’m really heartbroken.”

Marfione said she would seek theater alternatives in Mount Kisco and other locations.

Pleasantville resident Bill Olin said he’s come to see movies in Hawthorne often but there are still plenty of options. One alternative is going to National Amusement’s multiplex in Elmsford, he said.

Croton resident John Sarcone, who has been patronizing the theater since it opened in 1986, said he understood why it was closing.

“It’s a shame. We enjoyed the proximity,” he said. “But I don’t see any reason to stand in the way of progress. So if the owners of the property can develop this into something better and greater, God bless them.”

Neal Rentz