Carolina Mall Cinema's Facebook post announcing its permanent closure Monday, Sept. 28, had been shared more than 900 times by the next day. Concord residents flooded social media with decades of memories tied to the theater.

The Cabarrus Compass reported that its own breaking story on the closure was shared more than 140 times. Online, commenters recalled first dates, family outings and friendships that started at the cinema on Country Club Drive.

Laura Lindsey, chair of the Cabarrus County Board of Commissioners, said the theater was part of her family's story. She recalled dropping off her children there to see movies with friends and not worrying about their safety. Her youngest son got his first job behind the counter.

"That theater has offered so many families so many memories, for so many years! It's a landmark in Concord. I'm really sad to see it go!" Lindsey told The Cabarrus Compass.

Movie screenings at the site date back to Dec. 22, 1976, when the venue opened as the three-screen Carolina Mall Cinema III under operator Fairlane-Litchfield Theatres, according to Hoodline, citing Cinema Treasures. The theater later expanded to eight screens and was most recently operated by Southeast Cinemas Entertainment, a regional circuit with locations in four states.

As we reported Sept. 28, the theater posted a Facebook message that morning thanking customers for their years of support. A social media post cited by Queen City News claimed staff members were notified by message that same morning that they were no longer employed.

No reason for the closure is public. The Cabarrus Compass reported it had not received a response from the theater. As of Monday, the cinema's page had been removed from Southeast Cinemas Entertainment's website.

WBTV reported that regulars drove to the theater Monday night and found dark windows, locked doors and bare poster displays. Signs taped outside read: "The movie theater is permanently closed. We thank you for your years of patronage."

Patron Tina Jackson told WBTV she had been coming to the cinema since middle school. Aaron Lassiter, another regular, told the station the theater "felt like a small-town community theater."

One commenter on social media recalled meeting her future husband in the theater's parking lot about two decades ago. Another said it was where her husband took her on their first date, according to The Cabarrus Compass.

The theater survived several renovations and the COVID-19 pandemic, when its screens went dark but it kept selling giant bags of popcorn for curbside pickup, The Cabarrus Compass reported.

No reopening plan, new operator or redevelopment proposal for the space has been announced.