The CineLux Plaza Theatre will get a makeover to make room for more auditoriums, a lounge and alcohol service.

On Dec. 13 the Campbell Planning Commission unanimously gave the OK for the movie theater at 2501 S. Winchester Blvd. to proceed with the renovations. The theater is located in the 11-acre Campbell Plaza Shopping Center that also contains a Safeway, a few restaurants and a Dollar Tree store.

CineLux has operated in the shopping center since 1966, according to the city staff report. When the theater first opened, Jack Gunsky and Paul Norman owned and operated the single-screen cinema that sat 700 moviegoers. The Gunsky family continues to operate the theater and six others in cities such as Morgan Hill, San Jose, Capitola and Scotts Valley.

In 1969 another single-screen auditorium seating another 700 patrons was built. According to Paul Gunsky, the theater’s current operator, the original building last had a remodel in 2007. The southern building, which will house the proposed bar, lounge and new screens, underwent renovation in the early 1990s.

“Our challenge as a small movie theater operator is to evolve with the times,” Gunsky told the commission. “Movie theaters have changed tremendously since the ’60s and ’70s, and it’s our job to bring in every modern amenity that people now expect.”

According to Gunsky, both buildings seat 829 people in five auditoriums, two in the newer building and three in the original. The remodel of the southern building will feature three auditoriums with VIP and tiered seating by expanding the theater into what was previously a vacuum shop.

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The alcohol component was a concern for Commissioner JoElle Hernandez, who was worried that people would purchase alcohol without having a movie ticket. She said she didn’t want people to visit the theater like it was a bar and just come for beer and wine.

Gunsky told the commission the theater cannot prohibit visitors from purchasing concessions without a movie ticket.

“However, to be quite honest with you, we don’t have that experience, just because we’re charging a premium,” Gunsky said. “You’re going to be able to go to any other drinking establishment and probably get the same product for a little bit less. So we really have not experienced that.”

The commission also approved a new sign for the theater.

“We have loyal customers, but we’d like to attract more people,” Gunsky said.