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Topic: Flagship Cinemas New Bedford Removes Big Leather Chairs Due To Hypodermic Needles Dan
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Paul Goulet
Master Film Handler
Posts: 347
From: Rhode Island
Registered: Jan 2000
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posted 03-14-2016 06:51 PM
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Walk into some of the theaters at Flagship Cinemas New Bedford and you’ll see something strange. Some of them are half empty…meaning the front half of the theater is void of any seats. The reason may be startling. Flagship Regional Manager Bud Shepard told Fun 107 that the staff had found 4 dirty hypodermic needles stuffed within the leather seats over a 6 month period. One employee was stuck with a needle in her hand as she was trying to clean one of the chairs. That employee, says Shepard, is doing fine and is undergoing a series of infection control measures. The fourth and final needle was found as the company was removing the leather chairs from the theaters.
Flagship began using wands to clean the leather chairs, but decided that wasn’t enough. More action was necessary.
“There’s no way to control this problem. There’s no way you can pat down customers for needles as they come in. It was very disturbing. We contemplated putting plastic covers over the leather seats, but, in the end, we had to do what was right for our customers and employees…what would keep them safe.” –Bob Shepard, Regional Manager
That meant ripping out all of the plush chairs from the theaters, leaving only conventional movie seats. “We had never had a problem in the old chairs before…the needles would just fall to the floor,” said Shepard. They’d be swept up with the popcorn and M&M boxes.
Ultimately, Flagship Cinemas’ insurance company looked at the needle problem as a liability issue and urged the cinema to remove the leather seats. The theater complied.
It is no secret that Massachusetts is dealing with an escalating drug problem. Today Governor Baker signed into law a measure that would tighten up the state’s control of opioids and other prescription drugs.
Read More: Flagship Cinemas New Bedford Removes Big Leather Chairs Due To Hypodermic Needles Danger | http://fun107.com/flagship-cinemas-new-bedford-removes-big-leather-chairs-due-to-hypodermic-needles-danger/?trackback=tsmclip
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Leo Enticknap
Film God
Posts: 7474
From: Loma Linda, CA
Registered: Jul 2000
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posted 03-15-2016 12:32 AM
quote: Paul Goulet
I have never heard of that problem at any other theater in the whole country, has anyone else?
Once, but in another country (York, UK), and in the restrooms, not the actual auditoria, thankfully. Immediately after we opened a new theater, there were several incidents in which staff found used needles and syringes in the men's restroom. We installed blue lights and that was the end of the problem.
Weirdly, this theater was absolutely not in a bad part of town, but right in the middle of a city that is one of Britain's biggest tourist attractions.
I suspect the problem was that the bar/cafe area was frequently used for gigs, stand-up comedy acts and the sort of entertainment that attracts that sort of clientele. The druggie crud was usually found immediately after one of these events.
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Scott Jentsch
Phenomenal Film Handler
Posts: 1061
From: New Berlin, WI, USA
Registered: Apr 2003
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posted 03-21-2016 09:23 AM
quote:
Flagship Cinemas to close New Bedford theater in August
By Eric Bosco
Posted Mar. 16, 2016 at 7:16 PM
Updated Mar 16, 2016 at 7:17 PM
NEW BEDFORD — Flagship Cinemas will close its New Bedford theater by Aug. 31 and the company's CEO said the decision was made in part because he believes the city no longer wants to host a movie theater.
"Unbeknownst to me, the landlord, they rezoned the space to industrial about two and a half years ago and city officials wanted nothing to do with a movie theater anymore," said Flagship Cinemas CEO John Crowley by phone Wednesday. Crowley said he has had no contact with city officials.
Mayor Jon Mitchell, however, said he believes the decision to close the theater was likely business-related, highlighting what he described as the success of AMC's Dartmouth theater complex.
He said he did not know any specifics about the re-zoning Crowley alleged caused the closure. "The only re-zoning I can think of in that area would be when we made it multi-use to make it a possible train stop for the SouthCoast Rail Project and I think that would have had an effect quite to the contrary of what he's saying," Mitchell said. "I'm disappointed it's closing, I was just there within the last month."
Mitchell was referring to a change made after a September 2013 planning proposal to re-zone a group of plazas off of Kings Highway, including one which contained Flagship Cinemas, to "industrial A," which allowed the buildings to be used for transportation terminals, manufacturing or warehousing in addition to businesses.
At the time, Ward 1 City Councilor James Oliveira said the proposal would "add flexibility" but could not recall any specifics when reached by phone Wednesday. He said he did not believe city officials had any plans to get rid of the theater.
Planning officials could not be reached by The Standard-Times before deadline Wednesday.
The New Bedford cinema made headlines Tuesday when a former manager at the company was interviewed by WBSM and said that multiple hypodermic needles were found when workers cleaned the theater's plush seats. The manager, who Crowley said resigned in recent weeks for undisclosed reasons, also said one worker was stuck by a needle while cleaning.
Crowley said the worker was treated at the hospital and did not suffer a serious injury. He added that a total of three needles were discovered in a 14-month period when the theater installed and removed the leather seats.
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