The Villages files for permit for interior remodeling of former movie theater

The Villages has obtained a permit for interior remodeling of the old Rialto Theater at Spanish Springs Town Square.

The permit was issued this week by the Town of Lady Lake.

Genesis Health Clubs, which purchased the MVP Athletic Clubs at Spanish Springs and Brownwood, is moving from La Reina building at Spanish Springs to the shuttered movie theater.

According to the permit application, the new facility will be known at Genesis Health Club at Rialto.

The Rialto Theater, which originally opened in 1998, closed for a planned renovation in December 2019. Within months, the COVID-19 pandemic swept the nation, closing movie theaters from coast to coast. As the pandemic waned and other movie theaters eventually reopened, the Rialto Theater remained closed. 

The Barnstorm Theater at Brownwood is also closed. The Villages recently announced it has no plan to reopen the theater at Brownwood.

The Old Mill Playhouse at Lake Sumter Landing is the lone theater operating in The Villages.