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Beauty may be only skin deep, but Portland design commissioners would like a little more beauty on the skin of a proposed Lloyd Center movie theater conversion.

The proposal calls for renovation of the four-story Sears space at the east end of the Lloyd Center into a 14-screen movie theater for Regal Cinemas, along with office and retail space. The theater would also have a restaurant and bar and concessions.

The project went before the Design Commission for advice Thursday. Commissioners largely backed a staff report that recommended denial.

Commissioners criticized aspects of the design from LDA Design Group of Burbank, California, and 505 Design of Boulder, Colorado, particularly the metal cladding on stories two through four. The design proposes metal panels in 12 gradations of brown and red tones meant to mimic brick masonry, a material used on Lloyd Center exteriors in the past and present.

鈥淭here’s too many things going on,鈥� Commissioner Tad Savinar said.

Commissioner Andrew Clarke agreed.

鈥淪implicity of the fa莽ade would go a long way to a much better building,鈥� he said.

Commissioners urged the designers to return with a more straightforward exterior as shown in examples brought by the applicants, including the Garage Museum of Contemporary Art in Moscow, Russia.

The masonry-colored metal fa莽ade reflects the Lloyd Center’s past and future, architects said.

鈥淲e think metal’s a futuristic material,鈥� 505 Design partner Nick Igel said.

The renovation of the Sears space would expand the building by approximately 20,000 square feet, to 166,308 square feet. The movie theater would occupy 76,400 square feet on the third floor. Levels one and two would serve as office or retail space.

The proposed renovation would reach 86 feet in height, well below the 150-foot limit for the site. Aesthetically, the ground floor emphasizes glass and transparency. Commissioners praised the ground-floor design for contributing to an active pedestrian streetscape. The metal box sits atop the glass base.

Some commissioners said the project was limited by its use 鈥� based on an existing building, and needing a dark interior to serve as a movie theater.

鈥淚 just think it’s a difficult project to pull off when you have spaces that need to be dark in a box that already exists,鈥� Clarke said.

He said the metal cladding needs 鈥渂etter articulation.鈥�

Lloyd Center owner Cypress Equities of Dallas is looking to transform the retail space as part of a move among malls nationwide away from traditional anchor stores. Retailers such as Macy’s, J.C. Penney’s and Nordstrom have closed stores in malls across the country.

Sears sold the Lloyd Center space to the mall owners for $11.5 million in August 2016. Sears later announced it would close the store.

The Lloyd Center recently underwent a $50 million makeover that involved rebuilding and shrinking the mall’s iconic ice rink. The mall’s owners have also been eager to take advantage of the office market, leasing 36,500 square feet to Providence Health & Services.

The project is tentatively scheduled to return before the Design Commission for a work session Feb. 15. A design review hearing would follow at a later date.