New Permits Signal Hollywood Reopening
🧠 THE BRAIN SCROLL
ArcLight Cinema and Cinerama Dome filed initial operational permits last week, with additional filings today, marking the first concrete reopening move since March 2020 closure.
📖 THE STORY
Dome Center LLC filed a conditional use permit with LA City Planning on October 29th to renew alcohol sales at 6360 W Sunset Boulevard, covering both the Cinerama Dome and all 14 ArcLight screens plus the restaurant/cafe.
The filing represents the first concrete operational move since the complex shuttered in March 2020.
On November 3rd, Dome Center filed additional documentation including floor plans and site plans. The permit renewal seeks approval for alcohol service 7:00am to 4:00am daily across the entire theater complex. The existing permit expires November 5th, making the timing of this week's filings particularly significant.
Land use consultant Elizabeth Peterson-Gower of Place Weavers Inc filed the application on behalf of Dome Center LLC. Peterson-Gower previously testified at a June hearing that Dome Center had 'recently started discussing moving forward' with the Cinerama Dome.
The application's findings document explicitly references 'when the theater reopens' and cites job creation and street reactivation, providing the strongest public commitment to reopening that Dome Center has made on official record since the property manager's April statement that there were 'no plans to open.'
📓 THE DOCUMENTS
The conditional use permit application filed October 29th represents the first substantive operational filing since the complex closed. Filed by Elizabeth Peterson-Gower of Place Weavers Inc on behalf of applicant Dome Center LLC, the permit explicitly seeks to 'allow for the continued sale and dispensing of a full line of alcoholic beverages for on-site consumption in conjunction with the existing Cinerama Dome Theater, 14 auditoriums within the Arclight Cinemas Theater Complex, and restaurant/cafe with 2 outdoor dining terraces.'
The application references the renewal of an existing ten-year license originally granted under case number ZA-2014-1619-CUB, which expires soon, November 5th. Supplemental documentation including floor plans and site plans were filed November 3rd. The findings document states that 'when the theater reopens, it will bring additional jobs to Hollywood and reactivate the adjacent streets, increasing safety and once again bringing vibrancy to the surrounding area.'
The proposed hours of operation span from 7:00am to 4:00am daily, maintaining the service window that previously allowed the complex to host early morning press screenings, late-night premieres and industry events.
🕐 THE FIVE-YEAR SAGA: A TIMELINE
November 1963: William R. Forman opens the Cinerama Dome with the world premiere of Stanley Kramer's 'It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World.' The concrete geodesic dome is made of 316 hexagonal and pentagonal shapes, each weighing 7,500 pounds. The structure becomes an instant Hollywood landmark, housing the largest contoured motion picture screen in the world at 86 feet wide and 32 feet high.
March 2002: After a two-year closure and preservationist battles, the Dome reopens as the centerpiece of Pacific Theatres' new ArcLight Hollywood complex, adding 14 luxury screens with reserved seating, stadium-style recliners, and upscale dining. The renovation pioneers what becomes the modern premium theater experience.
March 2020: The Cinerama Dome and ArcLight Hollywood close temporarily due to COVID-19 pandemic restrictions. At the time, the complex was coming off a banner 2019 that saw over $15 million in ticket sales and a cameo appearance in Quentin Tarantino's 'Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.'
April 2021: Pacific Theatres Exhibition Corporation files for Chapter 7 bankruptcy and announces permanent closure of all locations, including the flagship Hollywood complex. Decurion Corporation, controlled by the Forman family, issues a statement declaring 'this was not the outcome anyone wanted, but despite a huge effort that exhausted all potential options, the company does not have a viable way forward.' Other ArcLight locations are sold to competitors. Amazon takes Culver City, Regal claims Sherman Oaks and Pasadena, AMC absorbs The Grove.
December 2021: First signs of reversal emerge when a public notice for alcohol permits appears on the boarded-up complex, sparking speculation about potential reopening plans.
June 2022: Decurion confirms plans to reopen both the Dome and ArcLight Hollywood under the new name 'Cinerama Hollywood,' with proposals for two bars and a full restaurant. Target reopening: late 2023.
September 2022: Industry sources clarify that 2023 was always the intended reopening timeline, pushing back against social media speculation about an imminent 2022 return. Plans call for 'top to bottom' refurbishment of the entire complex.
May 2023: Reopening timeline officially pushed to late 2024 as renovation planning continues.
December 2023: Deadline reports that the complex will not open in 2024, with a new target of Q2 2025. The delay is attributed to ongoing redesign work including restaurants and event space additions. Sources emphasize the redesign will not include notable changes to the historic Dome itself.
April 2025: Grassroots activist Ben Steinberg launches 'Save Arclight' campaign after speaking with the property manager, who confirms there are 'no plans to open.' Steinberg reports that sources told him the planned renovation was quietly cancelled and that contracts with contractors had lapsed. His petition gathers over 30,000 signatures.
June 2025: At a Los Angeles Office of Zoning Administration public hearing regarding the adjacent Blue Note Jazz Club, Elizabeth Peterson-Gower testifies that 'the property owner is again Dome Center LLC, Robertson Properties Group. They have reached out to me and have recently started discussing moving forward with the Cinerama Dome.'
August 2025: The Hollywood Reporter publishes an investigative piece revealing that multiple major theater chains made serious inquiries about leasing the complex, but Robertson Properties, Decurion's real estate arm, declined to offer long-term leases. The report notes that records at the Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety show minimal meaningful work has occurred since closure, aside from HVAC system overhauls.
October 29th, 2025: Dome Center LLC files conditional use permit application for alcohol sales, marking the first concrete operational move in five years.
November 3rd, 2025: Dome Center LLC files supplemental documentation including floor plans and site plans.
🧠 WHY THIS MATTERS NOW
The Los Angeles exhibition landscape has fundamentally changed during the Dome's absence. AMC now dominates premium bookings at The Grove, Century City, and Burbank 16, those venues that absorbed much of the ArcLight's former business. Landmark reopened the Sunset location and expanded to Pasadena. Netflix restored and reopened the Egyptian Theatre in November 2023. The Vista in Los Feliz and Vidiots in Eagle Rock both returned to operation. Yet none carry the cultural cachet or architectural significance of the Cinerama Dome, which remains Hollywood's most visible pandemic-era closure.
For Hollywood as a neighborhood, the complex's reopening would reactivate a critical stretch of Sunset Boulevard that has languished since Amoeba Records relocated to Hollywood Boulevard in 2020. The 6.28-acre site sits at the intersection of Sunset and Vine, with 1,725 parking spaces serving an area increasingly reliant on street-level activation for both safety and economic vitality.
🙋 THE OPEN QUESTIONS
Why won't Decurion lease to another operator? Multiple major exhibitors expressed interest in operating the complex, yet Robertson Properties declined to offer terms acceptable to third-party chains. The Hollywood Reporter suggested Chris Forman, Decurion's CEO and grandson of the Dome's original developer William R. Forman, may view the property as a family heirloom that can only be managed in-house. This creates a situation where financial viability concerns that closed the complex in 2021 would need to be resolved for Decurion to operate successfully in an even more challenging 2026 exhibition market.
What will the programming look like? The permit covers 14 ArcLight screens plus the Dome and restaurant facilities, suggesting the full complex will return. However, the application provides no details about programming strategy, ticket pricing, membership models, or whether the ArcLight brand will be retained or fully subsumed under the 'Cinerama Hollywood' rebrand announced in 2022.
When will doors actually open? The permit application provides no target date. The Q2 2025 timeline previously floated by Deadline has already passed. If approved, the alcohol license itself would run for ten years, but that says nothing about operational readiness of projection systems, seating, concessions infrastructure, or hiring timelines.
Source: Los Angeles City Planning Department, Case Files for 6360 W Sunset Boulevard (APN: 5546-015-037,038,039,041,042,043,046-050). Application filed November 1, 2025 by Elizabeth Peterson-Gower, Place Weavers Inc, on behalf of Dome Center LLC.
Additional reporting synthesized from Deadline Hollywood, Variety, IndieWire, The Hollywood Reporter, Los Angeles Times, Wikipedia, and Cinema Treasures historical archives.