A groundbreaking ceremony for Alamo Drafthouse in Corpus Christi was held Jan. 21, 2016. Courtesy photo
Construction is underway and a groundbreaking ceremony was held recently to underscore the point that the new Alamo Drafthouse is going up at 7601 S. Staples St. in Corpus Christi. Originally announced to open last fall, the combination restaurant/movie house should be ready for its first customers in time for the 2016 holiday blockbuster season said a spokesperson for the company.
The $5.8 million project includes seven screens. It will serve a full menu along with alcoholic beverages. Seating comes with tables and a wait staff to deliver food, which can be ordered at any time during a screening.
Headquartered in its birth city of Austin, the Alamo Drafthouse has 26 theaters nationwide. Sixteen are in Texas. A multi-entertainment complex to be called Movies and More was originally planned for the Southside site in Corpus Christi. Owners of that project combined efforts with Bach Holdings to bring Alamo Drafthouse to the area.
The two would have been competitors. When Alamo Drafthouse first announced it would build in Corpus Christi, the plan was to locate in the SEA District in downtown, near Whataburger Field and Brewster Street Icehouse.
Movies and More paved the way for the venue change. A contentious zoning battle was fought and won last year when neighbors of the proposed complex, which was to have included a bowling alley, arcade and beer and wine sales, protested the increase in traffic and the addition of drinking to a facility designed to draw young patrons. Alamo Drafthouse will not include an arcade or bowling alley.
