Galaxy Narrows 8
2208 Mildred Street W,
Tacoma,
WA
98466
2208 Mildred Street W,
Tacoma,
WA
98466
1 person
favorited this theater
Additional Info
Previously operated by: AMC Theatres, Galaxy Theatres
Architects: Doug Mulvanny
Firms: Swedberg & Associates
Previous Names: AMC Narrows Plaza 8
Nearby Theaters
News About This Theater
- Feb 4, 2013 — Tacoma 8-plex movie theater set to close
Opened by AMC on December 22, 1983 using a design the company used for a number of theaters. AMC closed in on January 22, 2009. It was taken over by Galaxy Theatres on March 13, 2009 Closed on January 31, 2013.
It was taken over by a church, but the local council refused permission for a change of use. The building stood vacant for many years and it was demolished in 2022. Apartments were built on the site in 2023.
Contributed by
Christopher Walczak
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Recent comments (view all 8 comments)
Four pictures of the Galaxy Narrows can be seeen here.
I added a couple of my own pictures I took around 1999 back when it was run by AMC Theatres and had Union projectionists.
Now closed! Never a big fan of early 80’s AMC but visited it quite a bit in its busy early years as a teen. Lots of memories! 1983 was quite the screen expansion in Tacoma: SRO’s Tacoma West added 2 screens to its 3, SRO’s Tacoma South 5 opened, and AMC opened the Narrows Plaza 8. Nearby that year AMC also opened the Center Plaza 6 (renamed SeaTac 12 North) and Luxury Theatres opened the crap-tastic Puyallup 6.
Prior to 1983 the Tacoma area had only a handful of multiplexes: The SRO Tacoma Mall Twin and Tacoma West 3, the South Tacoma Village which had just expanded to 4 tiny screens and in Lakewood the GCC Villa Plaza I-II-III. Single Screeners were very common. In Tacoma: The Temple, Rialto, Roxy (Pantages), Narrows (not the AMC), Bijou (Blue Mouse). Also nearby single screeners: The Lakewood, The Parkland and Puyallup’s Liberty. Also – 3 drive-ins.
Times have changed.
this opened on December 21st, 1983. article:
AMC Tacoma Plaza 8 and SRO Tacoma South 5 openings 18 Dec 1983, Sun The News Tribune (Tacoma, Washington) Newspapers.com
Grand opening ad posted. It opened on December 22nd, 1983 not the 21st.
University Place sole cinema is no more! Demolition of the former AMC/Galaxy multiplex began in March 2022 with the site designated to become yet another apartment complex in an area already saturated with rentals. The structure was a staple of AMC during the 1980s as it began its migration from mini cinema complexes to venues with large screens and state of the art projection and sound.
Currently an abandoned crack den.
The Narrows Plaza shopping center launched on the site of the former Oswald Airport that had operated there from 1948 to 1973. Ten years later, the strip decided to add an $8 million entertainment complex with a bowling alley and an 8-plex. Designed by Seattle architect Doug Mulvanny with some assistance from Swedberg and Associates which designed the exterior added entertainment complex, AMC signed on as the cinema operator.
The AMC Narrows Plaza 8 opened as a 1,860-seat complex on December 22, 1983. SRO opened the 5-screen Tacoma South the same weekend as the multiplex race was on. AMC moved on following the showtimes of January 22, 2009 as aging multiplexes had long been displaced in the Megaplex era.
On March 13, 2009, Galaxy Theatres took on the venue as the Galaxy Narrows 8 likely getting very favorable terms to get the property to its 30 year leasing commitment. Galaxy left the planet on January 31, 2013. The property owner found a willing church to scurry in within two years but the City Council had seen this tax dodge playbook run once too often and surprisingly denied the zoning change.
Short-term the move appeared to be disastrous as the parking area near the strip became graffiti covered and interlopers did unusual things to the vacant theater over the next seven years (!). Long-term, however, may have worked out as the entertainment center was demolished in 2022 in favor of leased multi-unit properties bringing some 276 apartments that were built there in 2023.