The future of former Elk River movie theater is now

Building bought by Price Homes will be office and showroom for the custom home builder; Elk River business plans to remodel and lease the rest of the facility

by Jim Boyle

Editor

The future of the former Elk River movie theater is now, but it starts with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and sneak peek for Price Homes from 3-5 p.m. on Tuesday, June 18, at 500 Freeport Ave. in Elk River.

Adam Price and his custom home building and commercial teams will be there with the Elk River Area Chamber of Commerce there to celebrate and explore upcoming available spaces for lease. There will be an official grand opening in the fall.

Adam Price has been dreaming about the possibilities ever since buying the property late last year. Price Freeport Elk River, an LLC based at 11110 Industrial Circle NW in Elk River, bought the 74,750-square-foot building that once housed the theater for $2.2 million on Dec. 13, 2023, according to the Minnesota Department of Revenue.

The building at Elk River Plaza was built in 1986, and Price’s opportunity to buy the building surfaced after Marcus Theaters decided to close the movie theater on April 18, 2023.

The location was marketed by B&G Realty, a Milwaukee-based real estate firm, as a strong area demographically and in terms of traffic count with ample parking with excellent visibility and access to Highway 169.

It is zoned mixed use, and there have been no shortage of ideas bounced around by the folks at Price. Some have spilled out into the community as people have heard rumblings of retail businesses, pickleball courts, and even a restaurant with ax throwing on the menu.

People have tried to ferret out fact from fiction as the ideas have made their way into rumor mills across the community. The rumors, however, are best described as possibilities, according to Danielle Jeanotte, a marketing associate at Price Homes who describes her boss as a visionary.

“Adam can visualize things better in his head better than others can even see on paper,” she said in an interview back in mid-May.

The June 18 open house will be a chance for people to see the space and consider the possibilities for themselves. A Tacopolis food truck will be there selling Mexican food The next step, she said, will be to sign tenants and to develop the space to meet their needs.

Jeanotte said Price wants to bring this part of Elk River back to life, and make it a destination for multiple reasons.

“We want to give people reasons to stop here and create traffic for the businesses that locate here,” Jeanotte said. “Ideas like garden centers and food trucks have all been talked about as ways to draw people to the facility.”

Meanwhile, Price Homes is moving its Elk River business from its current location off of Industrial Circle into the south end of the building that once housed “The Gym” that had been attached to Marcus Cinema.

In addition to offices there will be a showroom and a community space.

“I’m really excited for the opportunity to offer an enhanced client experience in our showroom and to host events in our new seminar room,” Jeanotte said.

Price Homes is focused on elevating the home building experiences for Minnesota homeowners.

“The idea is to offer better customer service and a more luxurious experience,” Jeanotte said. “It will also be easier to make selections in one place, rather than going to multiple places, to make for a seamless user experience.”

Jeanotte said Price Homes toured other showrooms and galleries, including one by Fergusson who has a gallery for its bath, kitchen and lighting options in Woodbury.

Price has been in the business for 20-plus years. He obtained his contractor license in 2003 and has been in business for himself ever since.

Price Homes did not start out as a family business, but Adam’s dad now works for Price Homes. In all, Price Homes has 15 employees with roughly half of whom work in the office and the other half in the field.

Like a lot of visionaries, Adam Price started working out of his home in the Zimmerman/Princeton area before locating in Elk River about 10 years ago. The showroom will illustrate what Price Homes can do for prospective homebuyers— everything from the look and feel of kitchen islands, fireplaces and flooring to millwork options for the custom homes they build.

For more information on Price Homes, visit https://www.pricehomes.com/.