High PG&E bills force Orinda Theatre to scale back

ORINDA, Calif. (KRON) – Skyrocketing PG&E bills are a problem across the Bay Area. They’re now forcing an East Bay movie theater to cut back.

The Orinda Theatre usually has its iconic marquee lit up, making it visible from Highway 24, but not on Thursday. It’s one of the cost-cutting measures the owner of the theater is taking, and now they’re also closing the theater on Mondays and Tuesdays after getting a $6,200 energy bill from PG&E.

“Obviously we’d like to be open seven days a week, but we can’t be open and have a loss every day,” said owner Derek Zemrak.

The gigantic PG&E bill came as a shock to Zemrak. It was about $2,000 higher than the theater’s usual bill.

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“It may peak to $5,000 in the dead of the winter, but never $6,000,” he said. “In 15 years since I’ve been doing this theatre.”

The Orinda Theatre opened in 1941 and plays classic films and new releases. Its large theater can seat up to 750 people, and during chilly evenings heat is required to keep the audience comfortable.

Zemrak says the enormous jump in utilities is forcing them to not only close the curtains two days a week but also cut back on powering up their iconic marquee.

No shining sign is a disappointing sight for locals.

“The marquee is probably the most iconic part of Orinda. It’s the symbol we all think about when we think about Orinda. It kind of makes me sad. I hope they find success.”

Zemrak says they’ve always been grateful for the support of the Orinda community, and word spread fast about the high PG&E bill. Zemrak hopes the utility will help them out.

“I did get a call from PG&E already saying how they could try to help. We’ll see where that goes,” he said.

The Monday and Tuesday closures will begin next month, but Zemrak says their monthly Tuesday classic movie matinee will not be affected.

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