Valley Fair Mall lights up holiday season

On Nov. 22, downtown West Valley City welcomed the “most wonderful time of the year” at the Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony hosted by Valley Fair Mall.

City officials and mall representatives were on hand as a 45-foot-tall Christmas tree decorated with energy efficient LED lighting and animated to music was turned on. The public was invited to the tree-lighting event and greeted with music, performances and a special announcement about the future of Valley Fair Mall.

West Valley City Public Relations Specialist Aaron Crim said the special Christmas tree at the local mall is a sight unlike any other in Utah.

“The tree at Valley Fair Mall is the tallest animated Christmas tree in the state,” Crim said.

During the tree-lighting ceremony, representatives of Valley Fair Mall and the Larry H. Miller Group announced a development project to bring a complex of new movie theaters to the old Mervyn’s Department Store building at the mall.

The new theater will be a state-of-the-art Megaplex Theatre with a six-story digital IMAX screen capable of showing both 2D and 3D movies.

In addition, the theater will feature 15 auditoriums, reserved stadium seating, concessions, additional space for private events and services for customers with special needs.

The new theater complex will include construction of a full-service food court leading into Valley Fair Mall called the Café Megaplex with restaurant outlets run by Snappy’s Burgers, Mayan Express, Main Street Deli and Bon Bon Gelato.

Megaplex Theatres Senior Vice President and General Manager Blake Andersen said the new theater in West Valley City is part of an expansion that includes improvements made at the Jordan Commons theater in Sandy.

“Megaplex is undergoing a substantial renovation and expansion phase with three new or expanding locations in process,” Andersen said. “We are adding a VIP theater to Jordan Commons, as well as two new larger auditoriums and special event space; we are set to open the new section of our Thanksgiving Point expansion in mid-December, and just opened our new complex at Legacy Crossing in Centerville.”

Crews are expected to break ground on the new West Valley theater in January, which could be open in time for the holiday season next year.

To celebrate the announcement, the Utah Jazz dancers and the Jazz Bear performed for the crowd gathered at the Christmas Tree Lighting event.

Members of the West Valley City Council were at the tree lighting. The council approved plans to finance the theater through tax increment incentives during a regularly scheduled meeting of the city council held Nov. 22.

The Christmas tree is on display through the month of December in the town center area just off the west main entrance of Valley Fair Mall (3601 South Constitution Blvd.).