Crown Center suit alleges theaters not paying rent

The owner/operator of Washington Crown Center has filed a complaint against Hollywood Theaters Inc., alleging the defendant has not paid rent for the past nine months.
In a civil lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Pittsburgh, Washington Crown Center Realty Holding LLC contends Hollywood Theaters “ceased paying its base minimum rent and additional rent, as required under the (commercial) lease, and has not paid rent” since March 3.
The document, filed Dec. 23, says the tenant owes $360,249.48. The plaintiff says it filed “for breach of lease for unpaid rent, along with interest and attorneys’ fees.”
Hollywood Theaters, according to the document, operates the venue now known as Regal Crown Center at the mall in North Franklin Township. The defendant, the lawsuit states, is “currently doing business under the Regal Entertainment Group brand.”
Washington Crown Center says in its complaint in the spring of 1998, the mall and tenant entered into a 20-year lease agreement “pertaining to the construction and operation of a 14-screen movie theater,” beginning with the completion of site work. That lease “was set to expire on May 8, 2019,” but was extended.
Civil Knox, general manager of the mall, declined to comment. She referred the Observer-Reporter to the owner/operator, which did not immediately respond to a telephone call.
The lawyer who filed the complaint, Jesse Ryan Loffler of Babst Calland in Pittsburgh, was unavailable. Regal Cinemas could not be contacted.
The Wall Street Journal reported in November that Regal Entertainment Group may have avoided bankruptcy when its owner, United Kingdom-based Cineworld Group PLC, secured a $450 million loan to continue operations.