The staff at Showtime Cinemas on Route 300 are clearing out all the theaters, except for a few, until Sept. 15 when the business closes forever.

"We had a good run," Showtime maintenance manager Jimmie Hatcher said as he toured News 12 around the theaters, some with all seating removed.

After years of uncertainty, Showtime's landlord Sam Newburgh LLC, has agreed to sell the building and terminated Showtime's month-to-month lease to make way for a 708-unit storage facility, Newburgh Self Storage.

Hatcher said business was not through the roof recently, but they were not planning on closing yet.

"This was independently owned and kind of a family business, and stuff like that," Hatcher said. "All Newburgh is going to be now is warehouses and storage facilities. It's kind of a bummer."

Town Supervisor Gil Piaquadio told News 12 in an email, "Warehouses are now in demand while retail businesses suffer, which is a direct result of online purchases, adding that there is also a "significant demand for storage units" among new families who are relocating to the area.

"Times have changed," Showtime owner Chris Bistor said. "That's all I can say."

Bistor said he was never quite sure when – or whether – to invest in upgrades to help Showtime better compete in the industry.

For years, he said, prospective buyers kept visiting the location, some even taking measurements.

Without a long-term lease, Bistor was not sure when his time would be up.

"It makes it very hard to run a business, especially in the times of the industry struggling," he said. "Then to add this into the mix just made it harder and harder to operate."

A representative for Sam Newburgh LLC was not immediately available Thursday to answer questions.

The town planning board was expected to approve the building plans at a meeting Thursday evening.

"We've already started to liquidate our assets," Bistor said, "so unfortunately there's no turning back at this point."

Showtime Cinemas will screen "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice" beginning this weekend and will open for the last time next weekend.