POTTSVILLE, Pa. — All year long, Black Rock Brewing has been screening movies in the beer garden outside their building in Pottsville.
"We do kids nights on Wednesdays, which are double features," said Bobby Weaver, Black Rock's founder. "People bring their dogs; it's a lot of fun."
Now, Weaver and his team are ready to take it to the next level, quite literally. They're planning to convert this room on the second floor into a brewpub movie theater and event space, complete with a 300-inch cinema-grade screen.
"That would fit about 50 to 70 people," Weaver said. "It would have movie theater-style chairs, probably reclining with cup holders."
Weaver said the expansion will bring movies on the big screen back to Pottsville full-time, and most of them will be free.
"We don't really have a local movie theater, and we have an amazing space upstairs that could fit it," he said. "Not even just movies, we'll be able to show TV show marathons and sports games."
Moviegoers will be able to order food and drinks from their phones and have them delivered right to their seats.
But before the house lights go down, Black Rock has plans to update the room. The building was first used as the Pottsville YWCA.
"All the woodwork in this building is super historic, and it's all still in great shape," Weaver said.
The building's features work to Black Rock's advantage. The wooden shudders can easily extend to block out the light and create a perfect atmosphere for cinema.
It's all coming soon.
"We have some code issue that we have to get through, but once that happens, it should only take a couple weeks to be open," Weaver said.
Weaver hopes the credits will roll on the new theater space by the end of the year. Whenever it opens, Black Rock will have the free popcorn ready to go.
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