'I feel really sad to hear that it is closing': Towne 8 Cinemas building up for sale

It's the end of an era for movie fans in Downtown Winnipeg as the historic Towne 8 Cinemas are no more.

The theatres closed temporarily in July, but the company that owns the building has decided to keep the screens dark.

The building is now up for sale.

"The owner is open to offers and it just literally hit the market today. So the process begins now," said Rennie Zegalski, who is with Capital Commercial Real Estate.

The company is selling the building for Landmark Cinemas – the current owner – with an asking price of $2.25 million.

A condition as part of the sale is that the new owners not use it as a cinema, meaning its days as a theatre are over.

"I feel really sad to hear that it is closing. I grew up in the 1980s, so when it was really in its heyday," said Christian Cassidy, a local history blogger.

Cassidy believes the theatre’s demise leaves a big hole in the downtown landscape.

"Really, you've gone from having 30 screens in the 80s to having none now, which is really a shame."

Jino Distasio is a professor of urban geography at the University of Winnipeg and says this is more than just another business closing shop.

"It's really hard for me to understand how a major city like Winnipeg can't have a first-run set of screens in our downtown anymore," he said. "It's a part of this real transformation of our downtown from what we knew downtown was, say 20 years ago, to where we're going. And I'm not quite sure where that is right now with respect to entertainment."

CTV News reached out to Landmark Cinemas, but has yet to hear back.