FORBES
MAGAZINE : Investment Guide "Under the
Stars"
Allison Fass
June 4, 2007
Here's an offbeat investment that combines Hollywood and real
estate: Open a drive-in movie theater.
Barry Floyd, an engineering designer, took his wife to drive-in theaters when
they were dating, even though she thought it was "kinda weird." After
they married he proposed building a drive-in of their own, while watching The
X-Files movie in 1998 at a Tennessee drive-in from the back of his pickup truck.
Nine years, four loans and $700,000 later, the Floyds operate the Stardust
Drive-In Theatre in Watertown, Tenn. But they have not made a buck yet. Was it
worth it? "Definitely," says Floyd. "At the time I started doing
this, I was in my mid-30s, I had a day job where I pretty much sat at a desk all
day long. I was as far as I could go. And I had this dream to build a
drive-in."
The ultimate retro investment. Richard M. Hollingshead, a salesman, opened the
first screen in June 1933 in Camden, N.J.; he had experimented by projecting a
feature from his car hood onto a hanging sheet. Viacom Chairman Sumner Redstone,
whose father ran a chain of drive-ins starting in the late 1930s, got his first
exposure to the entertainment industry working in a drive-in snack bar, before
expanding the outdoor chain and ultimately building indoor multiplexes, many
where drive-ins once stood. Redstone's National Amusements, the controlling
shareholder of cbs and Viacom, still owns two drive-ins today.
The industry peaked in 1958, with 4,063 drive-in theaters in the U.S., and now
just a tenth as many are doing business. The growth of the suburbs was their
undoing. Drive-ins stood on sprawling swaths of land worth far more as
subdivisions or retail outlets. This, of course, is still true: The theater
business is also a way to bide the time (and cover the property taxes) while the
land appreciates. Theresa Oldknow, whose family's business operates seven
drive-ins, says the company is selling a theater on a 26-acre parcel in San
Diego that her family bought in 1949 for $100,000, for $30 million. The 10%
annual return on the land is about what could have been made in the stock
market.
But, despite multiplexes, Netflix and fiber to the home, the drive-in industry
is enjoying a minirevival. Eighty-eight of today's drive-ins were reopened or
built from scratch since the 1990s, according to the United Drive-In Theatre
Owners Association. Oldknow says that over the last decade attendance at her
chain has climbed 63% to 1.4 million tickets. Barry Floyd says he sold 33,000
tickets (at $4.25 a head on average) at Stardust last summer, up from 21,000 in
2004, the first full summer it was in operation.
Drive-in owners wax poetic about how their business lets customers enjoy an
entire evening of outdoor socializing, eating and, of course, movie-watching.
Once upon a time drive-ins were places where young couples used to go for many
reasons other than to see a movie. Or where teens could gather with a case of
beer or a stash of pot. Now the drive-ins are slightly more wholesome.
"This weekend we're going to have a parking lot full of families and people
here to have fun, enjoy the fresh air, scenery and excitement, and I just feed
off that energy," says Rick A. Cohen, who owns the four-screen Transit
Drive-in in Lockport, N.Y., just outside Buffalo, which has been in his family
for 50 years.
Cohen says he nets 20% on revenue of $800,000. But that's not really a profit so
much as pay for working 65-hour weeks, eight months a year. Drive-ins fork over
50% to 60% of ticket sales (on first-run titles) to movie studios, usually a
break from the 60% to 70% typical of indoor theaters. Just as at the multiplex,
the bulk of drive-in gross profit comes from popcorn and soft drinks. The
outdoor theaters get revenue only on dry nights in warm weather, crimping their
ability to cover fixed costs like property taxes and equipment depreciation.
Starting a drive-in from nothing might cost you $500,000 for a single-screen
projector, land rearranging (to give cars something of the pitch you get at an
indoor theater) and buildings for concessions and bathrooms. You'll need at
least 10 acres of land, with the right kind of zoning. That's enough for
hundreds of cars.
Floyd, the Tennessee engineer, and his wife, Dawn, bought 12 acres in Lebanon,
Tenn.; then neighbors, including a retirement home down the road, objected. The
Floyds sold the land and found an abandoned drive-in nearby that could hold 200
cars, but it hadn't been used in 25 years, so they needed permission to reopen.
In May 2002, 200 Lebanon residents attended a meeting at the courthouse in
opposition and defeated the Floyds. But the Chamber of Commerce president of a
nearby town, Watertown, saw Floyd interviewed on television and invited him to
his office within days to discuss spots for the drive-in in Watertown. The
official saw that the drive-in would lure people to spend money at neighborhood
gas stations and restaurants. Floyd got $600,000 in bank loans to set up on 15
acres in an industrial park. A large part of the outlay was for blasting rock.
In 2005 Floyd left his day job in Nashville to work at a firm closer to the
drive-in, and although it was, he says, "against every principle I believe
in," he also cashed out his 401(k), worth $30,000, to put up a second
screen. In May he was able to open Spider-Man 3, Shrek the Third and the latest
sequel to Pirates of the Caribbean. As a result Floyd hopes he will bring in
$350,000 in revenue this year and finally eke out a small profit. Last year his
$310,000 gross disappeared this way: $75,200 for movie rentals, $51,600 for
food, $45,000 for 17 seasonal employees, $43,500 for taxes and $41,000 for other
operating costs. He would have cleared a few bucks if not for that damned
mortgage.
John De Leonardis, a New Jersey pediatrician, stumbled into the drive-in
business three years ago when he went hunting for a plot of land on which he
could open an inline-skating park and encourage kids to exercise. He found 17
acres in Vineland, N.J. and borrowed money to buy the site for $470,000. But he
couldn't bring himself to get rid of the movie screen that was still there--a
remnant of the Delsea Drive-In that closed after it showed La Bamba in 1987. The
kids don't get much exercise from their car seats, but the doctor retains some
of his original purpose by offering, alongside the typical burger-and-nachos
drive-in fare, stir-fried asparagus, cucumber salad, shrimp kebabs and low-carb
chicken. "I got the drive-in bug," De Leonardis says.
Movie
under the stars:
Drive-Ins offer a fun way to spend a summer night Murfreesboro
Pulse May 17, 2007 Matt
Tate
Marquees decaying with rust. Sixty-foot screens ravaged by neglect. Tracts of
land infested with weeds.
For many, this is their only image of a drive-in movie theater. But that is
starting to change.
After nearly being erased from existence, there are now 15 operating drive-ins
in Tennessee.
Thanks to some inspired local entrepreneurs, the drive-in experience is being
introduced to an entirely new crop of moviegoers in middle Tennessee, namely
families.
“We don't attract a nostalgia crowd and we don't try to. We are a minivan
crowd,” said Barry Floyd, owner of the Stardust Drive-In in Watertown.
In addition to the Watertown location, there are drive-ins in nearby Woodbury
and Tullahoma, with more on the way. A site in Camden has recently been approved
for a drive-in as well. Near
Extinction
No more than 10 years ago, drive-in theaters were near extinction.
According to the United Drive-In Theatre Owners Association website (uditoa.org),
drive-ins reached their zenith in 1958 with 4,063 locations across the country.
Drive-ins were built along the edge of towns to minimize light pollution. But as
urban markets begin to spread, land costs rose. When multiplex theaters and
cable television infiltrated the movie business in the ’70s and ’80s,
patrons abandoned drive-ins and owners were forced to shut down.
The UDITOA estimates that more than 1,000 locations closed between 1978 and
1988.
“Drive-ins never became unpopular. Drive-ins became unprofitable,” Floyd
notes.
However, in Tennessee, locations in Harriman, Sparta and Maryville were restored
and reopened in the late ’90s.
Floyd and his wife Dawn opened the state's first newly constructed drive-in in
more than 20 years with the single-screen Stardust in 2003. A second screen was
added in September 2005.
Ray Rhoton, owner of the Oldham Theater in Winchester and the Capri Theater in
Shelbyville, was driving past a piece of property in Tullahoma when a radical
idea hit him. He turned to his daughter Montana and said, “I’m fixing to
build a drive-in and name it after you.”
The aptly-named Montana Drive-In, operated by Ray and his wife Beth, opened with
three screens in November 2004.
The Higgins family manages the Higgins Moonlite Drive-In in Woodbury, built and
opened with two screens in 2005.
Unique Experience
Today, the drive-in provides a unique experience for those searching for a
casual evening.
“It’s amazing to see all the people who come out who have never been to a
drive-in,” owner Becky Higgins said of the crowds at the Moonlite.
A trip to the multiplex usually involves boisterous kids and cramped seats. The
drive-in experience allows, and actually encourages, frolicking children and
relaxed seating.
Families arrive early to play catch in front of the screens. Viewers are
permitted to bring folding chairs for sitting outdoors, while those with larger
vehicles have been known to fold seats down and lie under the stars.
Because of this distinctiveness, the drive-in theaters attract patrons from all
over Middle Tennessee.
Challenges Remain
Even with a rebirth in popularity, drive-ins still face challenges. Because of
the space needed to house the multiple screens of these local drive-ins, the
owners must purchase a sizeable chunk of property, and land is not cheap.
“The movie business is more about business than it is about movies,” Floyd
said.
Consider this—a Friday night showing of a first-run movie at a multiplex will
cost at least eight dollars. The drive-in provides a double feature of first-run
movies for a fraction of that amount. Sure, it’s a great deal, but as a
result, drive-ins rely heavily on concessions to make their profit. Fortunately,
the food selections aren’t your run-of-the-mill popcorn and hot dogs.
The Montana serves everything from chicken to BBQ ribs to fried Oreo cookies,
the Moonlite offers chicken strips and hamburgers, while the Stardust takes
pride in their Philly steak and cheese sandwiches.
More Than a Novelty
Proving drive-ins are not simply a relic of yesteryear, modern upgrades have
been added to make the experience more than a novelty. For instance,
drive-ins are no longer a haven for B-movies or racy pictures. These local
drive-ins are family-operated and marketed as a source of family-friendly
entertainment. And sound now comes across your car stereo on low-frequency
FM bands instead of intrusive car-side speakers.
The Stardust and Moonlite both hold “themed nights” to further generate
interest. It’s those kinds of revisions these owners hope will allow
future generations to continue “discovering” drive-ins. As Rhoton
surmised about the drive-in experience, “It’s just fun.”
Nashville, Tennessee May 18, 2006
STARDUST MEMORIES Summer nights swim with stars at
Watertown's drive-in movie theater
by Jim Ridley
When most people hear the national anthem, they
stand still. Christopher Floyd runs. Every weekend night, at the Stardust
Drive-In in Watertown, the voice of LeAnn Rimes singing “The Star Spangled
Banner” echoes from several hundred car speakers. Long before she gets to the
rockets’ red glare or the bombs bursting in air, Christopher is on the move,
bolting toward the drive-in’s projection booth with his custom yellow security
vest flapping. As fast as his 6-year-old legs can carry him, he ducks into the
booth and stands at the ready, awaiting his cue.
The instant Rimes trills, “O’er the land of
the free-EEEE,” the kid his father Barry calls “the yellow-vested man of
justice” flips the switch on the projector. Just after the song ends and
scattered cheers and applause ring from the far corners of the lot, a dense
white beam of light shoots out of the booth’s window, above the heads of
families hunkered in pickup beds and couples snuggled in SUVs. The first image
of the night flickers onscreen.
This scenario plays out about seven months of the
year at the Stardust. When the weather turns cold and frost blankets the grassy
grooves, or “rake,” where cars park on a slant for maximum screen
visibility, the screen will sit empty on a wide piece of acreage off Highway 70,
about 45 minutes from Nashville. But when the wild daisies that grow on the
lot’s fringes start to bud and bloom and the sun starts going down in prime
time, cars will snake down the Stardust’s gravel lane for another summer
outdoors at the movies.
“The last movie I saw here was Van Helsing,”
says Josh Mauthe, who drove all the way from Donelson with his wife Maria. “Van
Helsing sucked, but I didn’t care.” They’re sitting outside their
Honda CRV with two miniature dachshunds, Thelma Lou and Gabby, one of whom tries
to snag a stray sausage from Maria’s pizza. When their first child is born in
September, Mauthe says, they’ll have just enough time before the Stardust
closes for the season to bring him to his first movie.
To people who didn’t grow up during the heyday
of drive-in theaters, a night at the Stardust is an odd, inherently retro
experience. It’s pure Americana, from the kids tossing footballs in the grassy
lanes to the carnival-midway smell of funnel cake, popcorn and straw. It’s
also something that was once headed for extinction. From a peak of 4,063
drive-in theaters in 1958, according to the United Drive-In Theater Owners
Association, the number of America’s remaining “ozoners” has dwindled to
402.
The Stardust, however, represents a flicker of
hope. Where the 1990s saw vintage drive-ins across the state padlocking their
gates—including Nashville’s nearest, the Sumner in Gallatin—the Watertown
blacktop is one of three new drive-ins to open in Tennessee within the past
three years. All have adopted the features that allow outdoor theaters to
compete with big-city megaplexes and home entertainment: multiple screens that
downplay the risk of a dud and concession stands that essentially function as
onsite restaurants.
“This will be our first year in the black,”
says Barry Floyd, who opened the Stardust with his wife Dawn in August 2003. It
is a cool Friday evening, less than an hour before showtime, and twin jet trails
streak like comets across the sky over the slowly filling lot. In the distance,
off Purple Tiger Drive, cars are just beginning to line up at the ticket
seller’s shack.
The movie is Mission: Impossible III, a
far cry from the Roger Corman cheapies, slasher movies and sex-bomb sagas that
were drive-in staples during the slow fade of the 1970s. Die-hard drive-in fans
don’t consider Tom Cruise an improvement. But it’s clear, watching the
Stardust’s lot fill with activity, that the feature is almost beside the
point. The main attraction is the hubbub of kids and parents, the proudly buffed
trucks and vans, the pop songs echoing from speakers across the lot—the
elements of a social occasion that, although more scarce, has changed remarkably
little over the past 50 years.
The very idea of the drive-in is surreal: row
after row of cars in an empty field aimed toward the tallest structure in sight,
a giant movie screen rising incongruously from its rural surroundings. No wonder
some lots are used as churches: it produces a kind of amazement, as if you’d
stumbled upon some sort of shrine. On summer nights, the woods that circle the
Stardust chime with cicadas and frogs, and little outside light reaches the lot.
It’s essentially an outdoor room, with a sky full of stars as the ceiling.
“Any sign of ’em?” Floyd asks his wife Dawn
through a walkie-talkie as he walks the lot. It’s hardly uncommon to see Floyd
criss-crossing the grassy lanes: he strolls the area on both sides every night,
greeting customers and checking car tags—Wilson, Davidson, Indiana. A
7-year-old boy walks up with his mother near the creek that trickles past the
concession stand. “What’ve you got there, a frog?” Floyd asks.
“Grasshopper,” the boy says, extending his closed fist. Then he corrects
himself dourly: “one-legged grasshopper.”
Tonight’s walk, however, has an unusual
urgency. In a sea of more than 200 vehicles, Floyd is searching for a single
Honda Accord. Two days before, a girl named Jani brought by a special recording
that she wants played before tonight’s feature. It is of supreme
importance—so important that it prompted a minor crisis when Floyd tested it
over the theater’s loudspeakers. The CD-RW Jani handed over wouldn’t play,
and not a single store could be found in Watertown that carried the necessary
CD-Rs. In the end, the ticket seller dipped into her own home reserve.
The car has been spotted. “Everything’s ready
to go,” Floyd says. He begins the long walk from the front rows toward the
concrete pavilion that houses the concession stand and projection booth. The
peach-colored twilight on the horizon is fading to black. Unseen birds hoot and
trill from the woods. The lot is virtually full. Children are settling into
their parents’ laps, and in the spacious bed of a Dodge pickup, two guys
hunker down in folding mesh chairs with their Big Gulps.
The pop song playing over the drive-in’s
FM-radio frequency goes silent, and Floyd’s voice sounds from hundreds of cars
all the way to Purple Tiger Drive. He makes the usual announcements: coming
attractions, concession-stand offerings, a reminder to turn off lights while the
feature’s going. “Where’s the birthday girl? Where’s Jessica?” he asks
over the radio. Far off in the darkness, a chorus of squeals goes up from a
pickup.
“Jessica’s spending her 17th
birthday with us tonight,” the voice drawls. “Let’s give her a Stardust
Drive-In Honk-A-Thon.” The lot erupts in beeps and honks, muffled only by the
cavernous outdoor space all around. There is only one item left on the preshow
agenda. “Somewhere out there tonight is Joe,” crackles the voice, “and
he’s out there with Jani. We’ve got a special message to play for him, and
we need everybody to be quiet for a minute.”
A hush falls over the lot, and then a girl’s
trembling voice emerges from 300 car radios. “Hey sweet boy!” she says. “I
love you more than anything in the world, and I am going to ask you if you will
marry me.” In the dim light of car stereos, couples can be seen turning to one
another. Floyd’s voice comes over the radio: “Do we have an answer?”
There is an awkward silence. Then, from somewhere
on the lot, hidden among rows of club cabs and minivans, comes the faint but
assertive honk of a Honda Accord. Whoops and hollers follow from all corners of
the field. Over the radio, Floyd cues up the song that has become synonymous
with the joy of impending matrimony: the theme from The Newlywed Game.
“I was making enormous amounts of money as a
wedding DJ,” Floyd had said earlier in the evening, as the rows were still
filling with cars. “But I needed something more.” He adjusts his glasses and
looks around the lot. “On Sundays, my boys bring their bikes out here and
terrorize the customers. When it calms down, my wife and I get to walk the lot.
We go strolling down these gravel driveways, watching the families. That’s
where we really get our satisfaction.”
In November, the Floyds’ third child will be
born, just as the Stardust is shutting down for the year. The screen will sit
barren, bare trees and cedars will flank the empty lot, and occasional snows
will dust the grassy embankments where cars park in the summer. But tonight
holds only the promise of warm breezes, new love and popcorn under the stars.
All across the field, the strains of “The Star Spangled Banner” echo from
hundreds of vehicles. Right on cue, just seconds after LeAnn Rimes salutes the
land of the free, the screen fills with light. Christopher Floyd is on the job.
“It’s just a simple switch,” Barry Floyd
says, with a father’s pride. “But he does something huge.”
Nashville, Tennessee October 27, 2005
BEST PLACE TO WATCH MAINSTREAM FILMS: STARDUST
DRIVE-IN, WATERTOWN
Wanna know why movie attendance is declining? Because going to the movies
is not special anymore. In today’s anonymous googolplexes, moviegoing makes
viewers feel like disembodied wallets: endless commercials, assaultive product
placement, jacked-up concessions—and typically with shoddy projection as a
reward. It’s no coincidence that the drive-in, once expected to vanish
entirely, is making a modest comeback. The twin-screen Stardust, located 40
minutes down I-40 East in Watertown, is pure Americana from the instant “The
Star-Spangled Banner” echoes across the lot. The snack bar is fine, the
atmosphere’s priceless, and the drive-in sprinkles pixie dust over movies you
couldn’t endure otherwise. True, I peeled out in a cloud of gravel midway
through White Chicks, but I did stay about 10 minutes longer than I
would have anywhere else. In White Chicks terms, that’s an eternity.
—JIM RIDLEY
October 7, 2004
Best Movie Theater for Kids: Stardust Drive-In,
Watertown
Screaming kid plus movie theater challenges the definition of "victimless
crime." Cut down on stress by making a 40-mile haul east to Middle
Tennessee's newest drive-in, located on Purple Tiger Drive in Watertown, which
shows first-run double features with an emphasis on family programming. Kids
can frolic in the (sometimes muddy) lot until showtime, then curl up in the
backseat with an Alien Glow Pop while Mom and Dad snarf down the concession
stand's miraculously tasty cheese-steak sandwich. Bonus points for the
surrounding fields' hundreds of bullfrogs, which inevitably make a
kid-thrilling cameo. See www.stardustdrivein.com for directions and more
information—and be sure to read about this Saturday's Pajama Party. Jim
Ridley
From the "Tennessean" (Wednesday, October 6,
2004)
Area drive-in redefines family time
SHELLEY
MAYS / STAFF
A group of children dines on pizza in the back of an SUV before watching
the evening presentation at the Stardust Drive-In Theatre in Watertown.
From right are Danielle Booth, 11; Cole Booth, 5; Aoife Whitaker, 5;
Beau Booth; and Fiona Whitaker, 7. Owners of the outdoor venue, which
opened in August 2003, plan to add another screen and about 200
additional parking spaces next spring.
SHELLEY
MAYS / STAFF
Mt. Juliet residents Brian and Jamie Landrum and their children Scotty,
3, and Abigail, 11 months, watch previews of coming attractions before
the featured movie, Shark Tale, at the Stardust Drive-In Theatre in
Watertown.
By NATALIA MIELCZAREK Staff Writer Watertown theater proves boon to town coffers,
movie buffs
WATERTOWN — Spider-Man and Shrek
have been kind to Dawn and Barry Floyd this year.
So kind that the couple — owners of the
Stardust Drive-In Theatre — plan to expand their business next spring,
doubling the number of parking spots and adding a second screen.
''Last year, we lost money,'' Barry Floyd said. ''We opened late in August. We
made barely enough to get our bills covered. This year, we're good. We've got
our bills covered and then some. We will finish the season in the plus.''
During the two seasons that the theater has been
open, it gradually has become a popular hangout for local residents and
out-of-towners. Opening nights, especially on summer weekends, usually sell out.
Watertown officials say the business has significantly contributed to an
increase in sales tax revenues.
For moviegoers, especially those with children,
the theater has redefined the meaning of family time — running in the grass,
cuddling up in pillows in the back of a truck and watching movies under the
stars.
And, of course, following the great tradition of
the drive-ins of the 1950s, Stardust, too, has become a place to take a date.
Take Angela Crabtree, 19, and Kenneth Freeman,
20. Last Friday — the opening night for Shark Tale — they drove about
an hour from Murfreesboro to see the animated feature and Sky Captain and the
World of Tomorrow. It was their first date at a drive-in.
''You're not confined to a room,'' Freeman said.
''If I had other friends here, we could do whatever we wanted. We could talk,
walk around and just hang out.''
That's exactly what the Dushek family did last
Friday: lounge in the back of their van, eat nachos and chat.
''Sometimes I like to stretch out my legs, and you get to sit in your car,''
said Emma Grace Dushek, 10. ''You can't do that in a (regular) movie theater.''
Several cars over, the Snyder girls ran around
with their dad while Mom sat bundled up in blankets and watched passers-by.
''I remember it as a kid,'' Rachel Snyder, 28,
said about going to drive-ins years ago. The first movie she ever saw at a
drive-in was Jaws in Bloomington, Ind. ''My mom and I used to do it. I
figured if I have such good memories, then my daughters should have fun, too.''
Watertown Mayor Mike Jennings said he didn't have
exact figures as to how much the new business has contributed to the sales tax
revenue increase, but he said it was significant.
''We've had two major additions to our business
community, Dollar General and the drive-in,'' he said, ''and the sales tax
revenues have increased since.''
During July-September last year, local-option
sales tax revenue for Watertown increased by 47%, even though the theater opened
Aug. 27, Jennings had said earlier.
''All the people who come here, they don't come
to Watertown just to buy movie tickets,'' Barry Floyd said. ''They stop and buy
gas, go downtown to the square for dinner. Every dollar brought to this theater
we pay sales taxes on. A year and a half ago, there was no revenue generated
from that.''
Floyd said he couldn't estimate how much money
the business will make this year or how much money it has made so far this
season. He said he and his wife took loans for more than a half-million dollars.
With the addition of a second screen and more than 200 parking places, Floyd
said they should pay off the loans in four years.
About Stardust
The Stardust Drive-In Theatre in Watertown opened
in August 2003. The owners originally planned to build the theater in Lebanon
but ran into problems with land acquisition and approval from concerned
neighbors.
The Stardust has a capacity for 225 cars. It has
one screen, four stories high and 60 feet wide.
Adults pay $6, kids ages 6-11 pay $3, and
children under 5 get in free.
The drive-in will be open on weekends only until
after Thanksgiving. It's near the intersection of Purple Tiger Drive and
Tennessee Boulevard. Call 237-0077 for more information.
From the "Tennessean" (Sunday, November 10,
2003)
Drive-in theater quickly becomes a draw in Watertown
By ANDY HUMBLES Staff Writer
ALAN
POIZNER Jason, Amanda, Ashley and Dawson Culbert watch The Texas
Chainsaw Massacre last weekend at the new drive-in movie theater
in Watertown. Although it opened in late August at the end of
drive-in movie season, the theater is believed to have been a
factor in a recent jump in Watertown's local option sales tax
revenue.
Despite the fact that it opened in late August -
toward the end of the typical drive-in movie season - the new Stardust
Drive-In Theatre in Watertown has had a good enough start to be optimistic about
its future.
Mayor Mike Jennings calls the new drive-in movie
theater, which is owned and operated by husband-and-wife team Barry and Dawn
Floyd, ''an excellent addition'' to Watertown.
Jennings also thinks the drive-in is one of the
reasons that the local-option sales tax revenue for Watertown jumped 47% for the
July-September months, even though the theater only started showing films Aug.
27.
''I still don't think we've received the full
impact,'' Jennings said.
''But I do think it's providing a good
opportunity. I've been surprised when I'm out practicing law and somebody from
Franklin or Brentwood or Rutherford County say they have gone or are going to go
when they have a chance.''
After the more than yearlong process of acquiring
the land and going through the legal steps to build a theater, the Floyds
elected to go ahead and open this year despite the start of school, football
games and colder weather coming.
Dawn Floyd said that decision was based on
needing income ''to service the debts and expenses we already incurred,'' and on
''trying to make a name for ourselves.''
The first two weekends had four sellouts, with Finding
Nemo and Pirates of the Caribbean playing. And although there has not
been a sellout since, the owners say they have averaged 75 cars and about 200
people per night on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, through what they believe
has been a lull in movies being released. The drive-in has a capacity for 225
cars.
''We've seen the potential what we can do the
first two weeks,'' Barry Floyd said. ''Next spring and summer will be the real
test.''
Residents say the drive-in has continued to be a
topic of conversation in a throwback town with a population of just more than
1,300.
''You get two movies for $6, and ... you can go
with your friends and sit in back of a truck and watch,'' said Gina Martin, 17,
a senior at Watertown High who said she has been to the drive-in twice.
''I think during the summer there will be a lot
more people. It's sort of cold right now. I think it will (do well). It's fun,
it's under the stars. The picture, the sound is good.''
''I'm glad it's there,'' said Tammy Franklin, a
Watertown mother. ''It's something we and the kids can do as a family. It's
clean. ... I like it.''
Barry Floyd said the majority of movies were, and
would continue to be, directed toward family audiences. But he said there had
been weekends during which horror movies such as Freddy vs. Jason and
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre had drawn good crowds, ''which we didn't
expect.''
With Watertown's small population, the Floyds are
banking on people coming from the rest of Wilson and surrounding counties. Barry
Floyd said the theater had drawn well from Nashville.
East Wilson-Watertown Chamber of Commerce
President Jeff Tunks said the Chamber would like to incorporate the drive-in
into some of the city's events that bring in tourists. Tunks said those tie-ins
could include high school functions, shows and festivals and the popular
excursion trains that come into Watertown on certain weekends.
Dawn Floyd has said a second screen is also in
the plans, though probably not next year.
Dawn Floyd said they would like to continue
weekends this year through Thanksgiving and would consider December if weather
permits. She said the theater would open again in March.
''We're not ready for expansion,'' she said. ''We
have land, and we've designed the building for a second field, but that will be
a couple years off.''
Getting there
From Interstate 40, turn at exit 239-A
(Watertown) and go 10 miles on U.S. 70 East going into Watertown. In Watertown,
turn left onto West Main Street. Then turn left onto Tennessee Boulevard and
then right on Purple Tiger Drive.
Admission for kids 12 and older is $6; for ages
6-11, $3; and for kids 5 and under, free.
From the "Tennessean" (Sunday - October 26,
2003)
Dashboard nights
By SHELLEY MAYS
Staff Writer
These days, as memories of a carefree past
linger and the longing for old times grows strong, drive-in theaters are slowly
springing back to life
A stream of cars, minivans and pickups filled
with children and sleeping bags slowly moves though Gary and June Douglas' box
office that magically glows like a Christmas tree.
Built in 1946, the Hi-Way 50 Drive-in in
Lewisburg is Tennessee's oldest continuously operated drive-in. Its nostalgic
charm draws moviegoers from as far as 100 miles away.
Largely untouched by renovations, this drive-in
experience, with its screen tower, rusty speaker poles and full-service
concession stand, connects people to the past. Yes, though the speakers are
gone, the speaker poles remain. These days, the sound for the movie comes from
tuning the car radio to a designated frequency.
The Douglases purchased the drive-in nine years
ago. Before that, Gary had run the projector for 20 years.
''We just want families to have some
entertainment without having to take out a loan,'' said Gary, who has set ticket
prices for a double feature at $5 for adults and teens ages 13 and older and $2
for children ages 6-12. ''Here, we have a fun family atmosphere and you can be
yourself.''
First-timer Tiffany Hibbs of Nashville says she
likes the freedom.
''There's all this open space. You are not closed
in a box. And you don't have to sit in back of a really tall person,'' said
Hibbs, a 12-year-old who's hanging with friends Amber Griggs and Maghan LaFever
in the back of a pickup.
There are 14 drive-ins still operating in
Tennessee. Most of them are mom-and-pop operations scattered along rural
highways, such as the Douglases'.
Barry and Dawn Floyd are newcomers to the
drive-in business.
They own Stardust Drive-In Theatre in Watertown,
one of four new drive-ins that opened in the United States this year.
''What we've seen in just the month that we've
been open is families looking for affordable entertainment for a simpler time,
Barry said.
''I seriously doubt there will ever be over 4,000
drive-ins in the country, like we had in the late 1950s. But I do think you'll
see a steady progression of new builds and re-openings along with the closing of
older theaters as elderly owners retire, land values increase and fast-paced
development encroaches.''
According to statistics kept by the United
Drive-In Theatre Owners Association, there are 401 drive-ins operating in the
United States today. Of those 401 theaters, 45 were reopened and 21 were built
just since 1990. Four new drive-ins opened in 2003.
''The folks who attended as kids now take their
kids. A new generation is discovering drive-ins,'' said Debrean Loy,
co-executive director of the theater association. ''While there are still
closings, the huge numbers of closings have leveled off and something that folks
said would never happen did. This may be the banner year for new openings,'' Loy
said.
There are many theories regarding the resurgence
of drive-ins. They include: more affordable prices than indoor cinemas, a chance
for quality time spent with family and a desire to experience the past.
For Stephanie Murphee of Dickson, it's all about
affordability.
''Five bucks to see two movies, that's a deal.
And you don't have to worry about what you look like after a hard day's work,''
said Murphee, who comes once a month to the Pink Cadillac Drive-In in
Centerville with her husband, Casey, and their two dogs.
Breathing fresh air and sitting under stars is
Gary's theory for the renaissance.
And he offers this: ''When the VCR came out, it
killed the drive-ins. People started staying at home. Now people want to get out
of the house.''
Drive in and learn something
Richard Hollingshead invented the drive-in in
1933 while parked in his driveway in Camden, N.J.
In 1958, there were 4,063 operating drive-ins.
Today, there are 401.
One of the largest drive-ins was the All-Weather
Drive-In Theater in Copiague, N.Y. It had parking spaces for 2,500 cars.
Pennsylvania and Ohio have the most drive-ins
with 37 each.
This American experience reached worldwide with
drive-ins located in Russia, Canada, Australia, Germany, India, South Africa and
Spain.
Drive-ins are seasonal, meaning most close when
nights get a bit frosty, usually in early November. Here is a rundown of
drive-ins throughout Tennessee.
Dunlap Drive-In Theatre
Dunlap (Sequatchie County)
Hwy 127, southwest of Chattanooga
Phone: 1-423-949-3759
Web: www.dunlapdrivein.com Opened in the mid-1950s.
Stateline Drive-In
Elizabethton (Carter County)
2306 State Line Road
Phone: 1-423-542-5422
Parkway Drive-in
Maryville (Blount County)
2909 E. Lamar Alexander Parkway (Hwy 321)
Phone: 1-865-379-7884
Web: www.parkwaydrivein.com
Valley Drive-In Theatre
Waverly (Humphreys County)
Hwy 70 (2 miles out of town)
Phone: 1-931-296-4500
Midtown Drive In Theatre
Harriman (Roane County)
2734 Roane State Hwy (Hwy 70)
Phone: 1-865-882-6199
October 3rd, 2003
Voted "Best New Movie Theatre for 2003" in the
2003 - Nashville Scene's Reader's Poll
Best
New Movie Theater: Stardust Drive-In Theatre, Watertown
The
opening of a new "ozoner" (that's Variety speak for drive-in) flies in
the face of megaplex Darwinism. In scientific terms, imagine the birth next week
of a bouncing baby brontosaurus. But the blockbuster turnout for Tennessee's
15th outdoor movie theater, located about 40 minutes east of Nashville off I-40
in Watertown, shows that blacktop cinephilia may be in for a revival.
Even
with a wave of opening-night snafus--backward reels, burning film, a
concession-stand grill still sitting in its crate--the sellout crowd ate it up.
Families drove from as far away as Ohio for the double bill of Finding Nemo and
Pirates of the Caribbean.
Kids stopped playing catch just long enough for "The Star-Spangled
Banner" to echo across the lot from every FM-radio speaker. If you grew up
in the era of dusk-to-dawn quadruple bills, your misspent adolescence will flash
before your eyes. If you didn't, grab a Philly cheese steak, an Alien Glow
Pop and a jumbo Hi-C Fruit Punch, roll down the windows, and watch the edges of
the screen fade into the sky of God's screening room.
From the "Tennessean" (Thursday,
08/28/03) Watertown's new drive-in opening to rave reviews
By ANDY HUMBLES
Staff Writer
It's show time, ready or not, in Watertown.
The new Stardust Drive-In Theatre showed its first movie last night in a free
open house to the public, with the grand opening scheduled for tomorrow at the
location set in Watertown's Industrial Park on Purple Tiger Drive.
Husband-and-wife owners Barry and Dawn Floyd still had plumbers and electricians
working throughout the day yesterday and they were expecting to open with
portable bathrooms. Otherwise, Floyd said, finishing up involved mostly
''nit-picky'' items.
''With all the advertising we did to open Labor Day weekend, we made the
decision to go ahead,'' said Barry Floyd, who thought the regular bathrooms
could be ready tonight. ''We can show movies. The picture is great. The sound is
great. It's taken five years to get to this point from when we thought it was a
neat idea.''
Last night's open house showed Grease, which also is the movie tonight for
Wilson County Dignitaries Night, an event that is again free to the public.
Tomorrow's grand opening offers a double feature: Finding Nemo and Pirates of
the Caribbean, which will show through Sept. 4.
Watertown resident Ann Kneisel said she plans to go tomorrow with her husband
John and son John L. Kneisel, 13.
''The community is growing and it will be good for children to have someplace to
go and not have to drive to Lebanon and Nashville,'' she said. ''I know my
sister is arranging a special occasion for my son's birthday in October
involving the drive-in. We're excited about outsiders coming and seeing the
growth and development of Watertown.''
The Floyds had hoped to open this past spring. However, the heavy rains this
spring and summer held back construction. ''The weather was hard on the entire
project,'' Dawn Floyd said. ''There are still some good movies available to make
it worth opening.''
Floyd said the theater would stay open seven days a week for about six weeks and
then go to weekends only from about mid-October to perhaps December, depending
on weather. It would open again in March, Floyd said.
Watertown became the choice site for their drive-in dream after the Floyds
picked a location near Lebanon in the spring of 2002, only to have neighborhood
residents protest. The Floyds then negotiated an agreement to buy two adjoining
tracts of land in Watertown, one owned by the city and another a private
business in the industrial park last summer and fall.
''It will mean a lot to Watertown,'' Mayor Mike Jennings said.
The theater has one screen and capacity for about 250 vehicles. Barry Floyd said
a second screen is planned ''a year or two down the road.''
Gates open at 6:30 p.m., with shows starting at dusk. Costs are $6 for adults,
$3 for kids 6-11, and free for kids 5 and under.
From "The Critics Pick"
- section of the Nashville Scene
Stardust Drive-In
And now for the coolest news we've heard all
week: Middle Tennessee's newest drive-in, the Stardust in nearby Watertown, is
now showing movies beneath the stars. Founded by Lebanon entertainment
entrepreneurs Barry and Dawn Floyd, the Stardust boasts a grassy parking area
that holds 275 cars, with a concession stand that offers everything from burgers
and Philly cheese steaks to cotton candy. On Thursday night, the Stardust hosts
a free open-house screening of Grease; the ozoner opens for business proper on
Friday with the awesome double feature of Finding Nemo and Pirates of the
Caribbean. Admission is $6 for adults and $3 for kids ages 5 to 12; gates open
at 6:30 p.m., with show time at dusk. The Stardust is located on Purple Tiger
Drive in Watertown, 35 minutes east of Nashville, off I-40. For more
information, see the Stardust's Web site, bcfdj.bizland.com,
or call 237-0077.
From "Sidelines"
- the student newspaper of Middle Tennessee State University (www.mtsusidelines.com)
Barry Floyd discusses construction
of the Stardust Drive-In being built in Watertown. (Photo by
Jenny Cordle)
June 11, 2003
If you thought drive-in theaters died out with
blue-suede shoes, greasy hair, lower gas prices and the good ol' days, you can
guess again.
In the small towns of Lewisburg and Watertown, Tenn. (populations 10,413 and
1,305, respectively), drive-in movies have made a comeback.
Hi-Way 50 Drive-in, owned by Gary and June Douglas, continues strong in its
ninth season under their management, while Watertown looks forward to August and
the grand opening of Stardust Drive-in, owned by Barry and Dawn Floyd.
There are about 400 drive-in theaters across the country, with drive-in owners
staying in touch through the Web site dedicated to the industry, http://www.driveintheater.com.
According to Barry Floyd, while drive-ins declined with the invention of VCRs
and home entertainment systems in the 1970s and '80s, the business is by no
means dying out. He cites family values as the reason for their continued
existence.
"I think people are looking for family values. They want to get away from
reality. They want to go to a wonderland. And that's what movies do," Floyd
said.
For the Douglases, drive-ins are a large part of their history. According to
June Douglas, Hi-Way 50 originally opened in 1946 or '47 and was owned by the
Hawkins family of Lewisburg, Tenn. Gary Douglas ran the projector.
The theater closed for a time during the 1980s but reopened in 1992 under the
new ownership of Thomas Clark. Clark attempted to revive the drive-in, but ended
up reselling.
That's when the Douglases stepped forward.
"At the time, we owned a restaurant and we thought it [running the theater]
wasn't going to work," June Douglas said.
"But it was a fit, and nine years later, the drive-in draws in business
from across the state as well as from Alabama and Kentucky."
Both Floyd and Douglas noted the economic advantage of drive-ins. Douglas
commented that people, especially families, enjoy coming to drive-ins for the
relaxed atmosphere and lower prices.
"People say that they can bring their families here and get supper without
it costing them an arm and a leg. You don't have to dress up, people can bring
their kids and not have to worry if they get a little rowdy. Of course you don't
want them to get too rowdy even at a drive-in, but still it's more
relaxed," she said.
Hi-Way-50 drive-in is open only on weekends, with the first movie beginning at
dusk, or 8 p.m. Tickets for ages 13 and up are $5, ages 6-12 $2, and children
five and under get in free. All prices pay for a double feature.
The theater offers full-service concessions, shows first runs, and some movies
that have been out for a couple of weeks.
"We try to pick family oriented ones," said Douglas.
Hi-way 50's season runs from March to November, depending upon weather
conditions and patronage.
"Business stays pretty consistent. The summer gets pretty busy,"
Douglas said.
"When business stops, we stop. There's a minimum you have to make for a
theater, and when you can't make that, it's time to close up, " she said
with a laugh.
For the Floyds, their vision for starting their own drive-in theater came five
years ago when they took their nieces to a drive-in for the first time. Barry
remembers how poorly the theater was run and how unkempt it was. That, he noted,
caused him and Dawn to start pondering the idea of drive-in ownership.
"We started thinking about it, how we would do things if we owned a
theater," he said.
"We started asking, 'What about this?' and 'What about that?' We just
started playing around with the idea."
The hunt for good, clean fun has always been a part of Floyd's life. For nearly
18 years he, and later his wife, worked in entertainment as disc jockeys for
weddings and parties.
Floyd has been hard at work using his enthusiasm and creativity to make sure his
new theater will be a success. He hopes the drive-in, which broke ground
February 12 in Watertown Industrial Park, will benefit Watertown both
economically and socially by drawing patronage from surrounding counties and
making it an event to be enjoyed by local residents.
"We want to take what we did at the DJ business - we had fun doing that -
and combine it with the movies and put it in family setting," Floyd said.
"It [will be] more of an event night than it is a movie night."
He plans to have pre-movie games and contests which bestow upon the winner the
best parking spot - front and center - and free movie passes.
According to Floyd, Stardust theater will open in August. The lot will hold
250-275 cars. Future plans call for the building of a second screen which will
increase capacity to nearly 500 cars. The theater will show first-run movies,
with double features every night of the week.
Floyd's enthusiasm for the theater is shared by local and national interest.
Locally, cars line up in the street for a little rubbernecking as people
anxiously check up on the theater's construction process. On the national scale,
Floyd said he has received requests for music videos to be made on the site when
the theater is built.
But Floyd's excitement revolves around not simply personal gain, but in doing
something good for the community of Watertown.
"Anything to promote Watertown and promote the theater," he said.
More details on the theaters can be found on their respective Web sites - Hiway50
and Stardust.
The sites show movie listings, concession menus, directions and information on
other events held at the theaters. Stardust offers a link for e-mail updates on
the theater's opening.
Boxoffice Magazine - The Business Magazine
of the Global Motion Picture Industry
(April 2003 Issue)
Stardust To Be Sprinkled Over Watertown
After nearly five
years of negotiations, Floyd Entertainment Group officially commenced
groundbreaking on a brand new drive-in theatre in the Tennessee community of
Historic Watertown, According to Lebanon, Tennessee based Floyd, the
ozoner dubbed the Stardust Drive-In Theatre will cover a 15-acre site in the
town's Watertown Industrial Park, located approximately 35 miles east of
Nashville. Plans call for the first phase of the drive-in project, which
will include the opening of the first screen with a 275 vehicle capacity, to
unfurl sometime this year. The Stardust's second phase, which will involve
the completion of the second screen with a 550-vehicle capacity, is slated for a
2004 opening.
As featured on www.dixieweb.com
(The Middle Tennessee Times - newspaper)
Drive-in theater
to open in Watertown By Chris Tramel
Remember the days when Friday or
Saturday night meant going to the local drive-in theater? Those times when you
and your friends would pile into a car to see the latest Hollywood blockbuster,
or you and your date would take in a movie not even knowing what was playing? I
remember those days and always felt there was something special about the
drive-in.
Since those days of my youth, the
local drive-in has all but become extinct. The gas crisis of the seventies and
the rise of the VCR and other home entertainment basically kept moviegoers at
home. But the nostalgic days of the drive-in have recently been making a
comeback.
On Wednesday, February 12, Barry
Floyd of Floyd Entertainment Group, LLC and a group of Watertown citizens
attended a groundbreaking ceremony for the new Stardust Drive-In Theatre in the
Watertown Industrial Park. Mr. Floyd told The Middle Tennessee Times that the
first phase of the project will feature a sixty-foot wide, four story tall
screen, which will sit sixteen feet off the ground, making it one of the largest
screens in Tennessee. Floyd says the screen should arrive in twelve weeks and
that the viewing area will accommodate 275 vehicles. A second screen is planned
for the 2004 season and will increase the theater's total capacity to 550
vehicles.
Mr. Floyd says that construction on
the site starts this week, and the new theater will feature a modern touch to
the drive-in experience. The facility will show first run [new] movies and will
use an AM/FM Dolby broadcast system so moviegoers will be able to hear the
pictures using their car stereos. Gone are the days of the old wired boxes with
small speakers. Floyd says that customers will simply tune in the movie using a
set frequency on their radio dials. Portable radios will be available if needed.
The developers of the project say
they are not marketing the theater towards teens but rather for families. They
want the area to have a "backyard setting" where families will be able
to view shows under the stars, opting for a grassy parking area rather than a
pavement. The development also has plans for a 200-seat amphitheater, which
would provide a setting for concerts, plays and church events along with covered
shelters for family dining and a grassy area with a playground for young
children.
Mr. Floyd says that the best part of
the theater will be the price. He says that there will be no carload pricing and
admission will be six dollars for adults with children from five to eleven
admitted for only three dollars. In most cases children under five will be
admitted free. "It will be an economical way to watch movies," Floyd
said, "for less than the price of a single ticket to the indoor
cinemas."
Floyd Entertainment Group says they
are shooting for a May 2nd grand opening date, barring any delays and hopes to
draw patrons from a thirty-mile area, especially from the small local towns like
Alexandria, Liberty, Smithville, Lebanon and Gordonsville.
With the success of a new drive-in
in Sparta and the much-anticipated opening of the Stardust in Watertown, it's
sure that a new generation of moviegoers will experience the movies just like
some of us in the good ol' days.
From "The Wilson World" (Thursday February 13,
2003)
Stardust Drive-in breaks ground
in Watertown
WATERTOWN -- Ground
breaking ceremonies were held Wednesday morning for the Stardust Drive-in
theatre in Watertown.
City and
county officials were on hand for the event sponsored by Historic Watertown and
the Chamber of Commerce. Located at the intersection of Purple Tiger Drive and
Tennessee Boulevard, the nearly $500,000 project is owned by the Floyd
Entertainment Group, LLC and will be built to handle 275 vehicles.
The site is situated in the Watertown Industrial Park -- a
location that offered everything necessary including water, sewer, three-phase
power and natural gas. Plans call for the first of two screens to be up and
running early in May with a second screen to be added in time for the 2004
season.
Barry Floyd of Floyd Entertainment said his vision for the
project includes covered shelters for family dining a playground and double
features.
"It is our intention to bring the latest new movies
as soon as they open nationwide. On occasions we will open a feature a week or
so off the national release date due to product availability. No "B"
type movies will be shown, as will no "adult" type movies be
shown," Floyd said.
"The Stardust Drive-In Theatre is a "family
oriented" entertainment facility, and we intend to program our shows
accordingly. Our features will be rated according to the MPAA ratings system,
and will be enforced at the box office," Floyd said.
Pricing for the theatre will be per person. Due to the
fact that Stardust plans to show new first run movies, the film companies have
dictated a "per-person" pricing structure.
From the "Covering the Counties" section of the
"newschannel5.com" web site of WTVF - Nashville, Tennessee
CBS Television Affiliate - February 12, 2003
Wilson
County
There was a groundbreaking ceremony for the new drive-in theatre in Watertown
today. It'll be located near the intersection of Purple Tiger Drive and
Tennessee Boulevard. The developer had wanted to put the theater in Lebanon but
he withdrew his proposal because so many residents were against it. The drive-in
should open sometime this summer.
From "The Lebanon Democrat" (Monday December 30, 2002)
Funding approved for theater
By BRIAN HARVILLE Staff Writer
By the time summer rolls around with warmer temperatures and plenty of
sunshine, Watertown's already intense Americana charm will likely be magnified
by a new drive-in movie theater.
Developers of the Stardust Drive-In Theater said Friday that the project is
moving along well, and funding is now in place to begin developing finite
financial plans for the project.
"Everything has kind of fallen directly into place. Everything's
turned out great," Barry Floyd of the Floyd Entertainment Group said.
After Floyd sought to build the theater in Lebanon with little success, he
explained he was pleased to find a suitable site in the Watertown Industrial
Park. He said the Watertown location offered "pretty much"
everything the business would need including water, sewer, three-phase power and
natural gas.
Upon receiving zoning approval from the Watertown City Council in August,
Floyd said the next step in the process of bringing the silver screen to Eastern
Wilson County was putting funding into place - a task that was only completed in
recent weeks.
"It took awhile to get. This is a half-million dollar project, and
it's just me and my wife. We're not really extremely rich like the Powerball
guy who won (Thursday)," Floyd laughed.
Floyd added he and his wife had originally sought to finance the project
through a bank in Nashville, but were unable to get a definitive answer.
In the end, local bankers proved to be the key to the successful funding of the
theater. "Once we met with some local bankers in Lebanon, things just
fell into place," Floyd said. "(In Nashville), we couldn't get a
'yes' or 'no' answer. With the bank we dealt with in Lebanon, we got an
answer within a week."
Now that the funding is in place, Floyd said he and his wife plan to close
the deal on the land soon and have already begun contacting several movie
production studios. "We look to probably close on the land within the
next two to three weeks.... the ground breaking ceremony will probably be in
late January, and we'll probably start excavating immediately after that,"
he said. "We look for the theater to be open by Friday night, May 2.
"We've been in contact with some of the film studios already trying to
get product lined up... Buena Vista, Sony, MGM. We've been dealing with
everybody," he added.
When Floyd and his wife proposed the idea of establishing a drive-in theater
earlier this year in Lebanon, the project was met with opposition from nearby
residents. Floyd said the Watertown location would cause no such problems.
"One of the benefits of where we've got the theater located now is that
there are no other residential areas around it," he explained.
"The only time we're open (nearby businesses) will be closed. The
only traffic generated in there at night is going to be from us. So, we're
not going to be hindering any of the businesses, and they won't be hindering
us."
The drive-in theater's site plan must still be approved by the Wilson County
Planning Commission on a final reading, but Floyd said he doesn't anticipate any
problems. Wilson County Planner Tom Brashear has already seen the site
plan, Floyd noted, and has recommended its approval under the condition Floyd's
company addresses some landscaping issues.
Floyd also said that while he and his wife had hoped to open with two movie
screens, the drive-in would only have one when it opens in May. He added
they plan to add the second screen at the beginning of the 2004 season.
In the meantime, the Floyd's are sure to stay busy as they work towards
bringing the Stardust Drive-In Theatre to Watertown. The couple plans to
make a trip to Orlando, Fla. in the coming weeks to attend the Drive-In Owners'
Convention.
Floyd said he and his wife couldn't be more excited about the coming months
and the opening of the theater. "We think it's going to be one of the
nicest drive-ins in Tennessee," he said. It really is. It's going to
be nice."
From the "Tennessean" (Tuesday December 10, 2002)
Drive-in may open later with
one screen
By ANDY HUMBLES Staff Writer
Financing snags hinder venture in Watertown
Watertown's proposed drive-in movie theater may open later than originally
hoped and could start with one screen instead of the two planned because of
financing holdups, according to the Lebanon businessman who wants to build it.
Barry Floyd still expects the drive-in movie theater to be operating by this
coming spring, though he had hoped to have broken ground by now and was shooting
for an April 4, 2003, opening.
''Now, we're shooting for late April or early May, and we may have one screen
starting out and put the second one up midseason or at the end of the season.
''It's still possible we could open April 4, but we'd need a break in the
weather.''
Floyd said he planned to attend tonight's Watertown City Council meeting as a
citizen, ''just to make our presence known and reassure everyone we're still
coming.''
The land is two adjacent tracts Floyd has agreed to purchase in Watertown's
industrial park near the intersection of Purple Tiger Drive and Tennessee
Boulevard. One tract is owned by the city and the other privately owned by
Specialty Converting.
Floyd said the total cost of the land agreed on was $136,700. He said the
total amount needed, including equipment and construction, is $485,000.
''There are no problems,'' Floyd said of the financing process being done
with three banks and the federal Small Business Administration. ''Just getting
them to communicate with each other is the hard part.''
Building the theater with one screen would cut out about $110,000 of the
project, Floyd said. He's considering operating with one screen for the first
season ''until business justifies it can handle two screens. But with our
proximity to Nashville, I don't think that will be a problem. It doesn't cost
twice as much to build another screen, but it does cut your income in half.''
Floyd said he ''should know something in a week or so,'' on the financing.
''They said the earliest we could close is late December or early January, which
would leave us about four months.''
Excerpt
from an article as appeared in the Orlando Sentinel October 20, 2002
By
Roger Moore | Sentinel Staff Writer
............As
the nights cool off and the bugs stage an autumnal retreat, popping into a
drive-in becomes a pleasant, low-cost night out in Jacksonville, Fort
Lauderdale, Lake Worth and other places where the theaters survive.
And when the movie's a hit, the crowds come. Signs packed Fort Myers' North Side
Drive-In, and drive-ins in Ruskin and Tampa in late August, Red Dragon is
filling Jacksonville's Playtime Family Drive-In, and Fort Lauderdale's 10-screen
Swap Shop Drive-In.
"It's sad that the Ocala is closing," Sherer says, noting that many of
the ones still open are thriving. "The drive-in will continue to hold a
special place in the entertainment arena. Some folks will lose theirs . . .
others are going to have a new one, in Williams, Arizona, or Taneytown,
Maryland, or Watertown, Tennessee, to name a
few."
Watertown
awaits counteroffer from Floyd
By ANDY HUMBLES Staff Writer - Tennessean (As appeared on the Local
News section of Wilson World.com)
WATERTOWN
-- The Lebanon businessman wanting to build a drive-in movie theater in
Watertown says he will respond to the city's counteroffer for the land needed
for the theater.
On August 29 the Watertown City Council
unanimously approved Mayor Mike Jennings' proposal to sell city-owned land in
Watertown's industrial park. Jennings' counteroffer came after Barry Floyd's
original offer last week.
Floyd said he will do ''some numbers-crunching''
over the weekend.
''We may have to trade numbers one more time, but
I'm confident we can get a deal,'' Floyd said. ''But it has to happen soon. We
can't pour concrete in cold weather. We have to start construction soon if we
want to be ready by April.''
Watertown's City Council approved Jennings'
counterproposal 6-0, including the mayor's vote, City Clerk Janice Vann said.
Floyd is looking at two tracts of land, each
larger than seven acres, for the drive-in: one city-owned and the other
privately owned by Specialty Converting. Floyd said he has reached an agreement
for the privately owned land.
Floyd said his original offer to the city was
$8,000 per acre, with a provision he keep it five years or pay more. He said the
city's counteroffer was $15,000 per acre. It would be $10,000 up front with the
additional $5,000 per acre to be paid the next five years.
The proposal said the additional $5,000 could be
waived if sales projections were met, Floyd said.
''Either way they get their money,'' Floyd said,
referring to sales tax revenues from the proposed drive-in. ''The economic
impact of what we're going to be giving to Watertown will be tremendous. We
estimated 100,000 will show up the first year. It's not that far off and sounds
almost agreeable. I'm still very confident a deal is going to happen.''
From the local news section of the WSMV.com web site - NBC Television Affiliate -
Nashville, Tennessee August 30, 2002
Wilson County
There will soon be a new drive-in theater in Wilson County. The Zoning Board
approved the land in Watertown this week. It'll be located near the intersection
of Purple Tiger Drive and Tennessee Boulevard. The developer had wanted to put
the theater in Lebanon but he withdrew his proposal because so many residents
were against it.
From the "Tennessean" (Thursday August 29, 2002)
Watertown site OK'd for
drive-in
By ANDY HUMBLES Staff Writer
The Watertown Board of Zoning Appeals has approved the location on which a
Lebanon businessman wants to build and operate a drive-in movie theater.
The land in Watertown's Industrial Park involves two adjacent tracts of land
Barry Floyd is looking to purchase to operate the drive-in. One is owned by the
city and another is privately owned. Both are near the intersection of Purple
Tiger Drive and Tennessee Boulevard in Watertown.
Floyd said he has made an offer for the city-owned land, and Watertown Mayor
Mike Jennings said it was possible the sales price could be discussed tonight at
a recessed city council meeting.
Specialty Converting owns the adjoining tract.
WANT 98.9 FM - Lebanon, Tennessee (Thursday August 15,
2002)
Coleman & Company Radio Show - with special guest Mayor Mike Jennings of
Watertown. Call-in segments featured Barry Floyd of the Floyd
Entertainment Group discussing the proposed drive-in theatre.
From the "Tennessean" (Thursday August 15, 2002)
Drive-in owner clears hurdle
for land buy
By ANDY HUMBLES Staff Writer
The Watertown City Council has voted unanimously to proceed with selling city
land to a Lebanon businessman who wants to put up a drive-in movie theater in
the city's industrial park.
The city owns a 7.5-acre tract that Barry Floyd wants for a drive-in. The
vote was 7-0 from the six aldermen and Mayor Mike Jennings.
Floyd said he probably would submit a written offer to Jennings within 10
days for the land.
''Everything went perfect,'' Floyd said. ''We'll have to do some
number-crunching and see what we're looking at. The major hurdle was, did the
city want this in an industrial park? And that was a unanimous 'yes.' ''
An adjacent 7.5-acre tract of land Floyd also wants for the drive-in is
privately owned by Specialty Converting.
Yesterday in a meeting with a company representative, Watertown Chamber of
Commerce President Jeff Tunks said an agreement on a price for that tract was
reached, contingent on an agreement with the city.
''The big thing now is the city,'' Tunks said. ''I went to a tourism meeting
yesterday, and everyone asks me when it's coming. I won't say it's for sure
until we start breaking ground, but it gets a little closer every day.''
The city council has plans to meet again this month because this week's
meeting was recessed though a date hasn't been set yet. Jennings could present
Floyd's offer at that time.
''I wish it was going to another site because it is an industrial park,''
said Watertown Alderman Jan Jewell. ''But I don't think there is a better
location. We've been trying to get industry several years, and we haven't had
any bites because of the distance from the interstate.
''At least it would be usage of that land, and it's a unique thing. There
aren't that many drive-ins anymore, and the country is going through a nostalgia
phase.''
From the "Covering the Counties" section of the
"newschannel5.com" web site of WTVF - Nashville, Tennessee
CBS Television Affiliate - August 13, 2002
Wilson County
Watertown's mayor says he will suggest to the City Council next week they sell
city land for use as a drive-in movie theater. Barry Floyd of Lebanon wants to
construct and operate a drive-in theater in Watertown's industrial park area.
The land is near the intersection of Purple Tiger Drive and Tennessee Boulevard.
From the "Tennessean" (Saturday August 10, 2002)
Watertown considers selling land for
drive-in
By ANDY HUMBLES Staff Writer
Watertown's mayor says he will suggest to the City Council next week that
they sell city land for use as a drive-in movie theater.
Mayor Mike Jennings said ''to this point everything has been positive,'' in
his discussions with Lebanon's Barry Floyd, who wants to construct and operate a
drive-in theater in Watertown's industrial park area.
''I'll recommend Tuesday that we offer it for sale to Barry,'' Jennings said.
''There are still things that have to happen, but we'll find out Tuesday if this
is something the council wants to pursue.''
The land is actually two tracts of about 7.5 acres each near the intersection
of Purple Tiger Drive and Tennessee Boulevard. The city owns one tract, and
Floyd said the other was owned by a private firm.
Watertown Chamber of Commerce President Jeff Tunks has been negotiating for
the privately owned land and said he ''feels like a deal can be made.''
Jennings said the town council will determine the price of the city-owned
land.
''Mayor Jennings said we don't want the price to be a deal killer, but we're
not going to give it away,'' Floyd said.
''I have to convince the town council you don't make money on the front end,
but you make your profit year after year on sales tax revenue. You'd be building
tax revenue for the next 20 to 30 years.''
Yesterday Floyd met with Wilson County/Watertown Planner Tom Brashear to go
over site plan ideas.
Floyd also filed an application for zoning appeal to the Watertown Zoning
Board yesterday because the drive-in would be commercial use on industrial zoned
property. That meeting would be Aug. 27.
Tunks said he has been gathering signatures from the industrial park users
asking for support of the drive-in.
''I haven't found any opposition so far,'' Tunks said. ''I'm not saying there
might not be some. But it's just too many positives for the city.''
From the "Tennessean" (Tuesday July 23, 2002)
Watertown mayor to hear drive-in
proposal
By ANDY HUMBLES Staff Writer
A meeting is scheduled for today between Watertown Mayor Mike
Jennings and a man who wants to build a drive-in movie theater within
the city limits.
The Watertown industrial park area near Tennessee Boulevard is the
location that Barry Floyd has pinpointed for the drive-in that he wants
to operate.
''We'll submit a site plan, and then he can recommend it to the
Watertown city planning office,'' said Floyd, of Floyd Entertainment
Group of Antioch. ''If we can get all the approvals passed, we hope to
start construction mid-September.''
Floyd said his goal is to open next spring.
In May he withdrew a zoning request for a proposed drive-in outside
Lebanon after strong opposition from neighborhood residents. Shortly
afterward he began looking at several locations in Watertown.
''The site we're looking at now has no residential neighbors,'' Floyd
said. ''Sewer, natural gas and three-phase power, which we need to run
our projection system, are all on site. Unless Mayor Jennings has a big
disagreement, I don't think you'll find any opposition. I've never found
a more hospitable town to deal with.''
Jennings, an attorney, said: ''I'm anxious to talk to him. It's
premature to say I'm for it or against it. I'm very interested. I'll say
that.''
Floyd has been working mostly with Watertown Chamber of Commerce
President Jeff Tunks. Tunks said Jennings has ''seemed receptive,'' in
their discussions.
Tunks said a zoning variance would be needed to operate the theater
since the proposed site is zoned industrial.
Floyd said he had also talked with Mt. Juliet about acquiring land
for a drive-in after withdrawing his earlier request to run a theater
outside Lebanon in Wilson County near the U.S. 70 location.
''Mt. Juliet is a great location, but it's ... expensive land,''
Floyd said. ''And Watertown gives us ability to draw from Lebanon and
Watertown and places like Smithville, Gordonsville and Alexandria, where
they have no other entertainment choices.''
From the "Philadelphia Inquirer" (Monday July
15, 2002)
Drive-in movies still alive and
flicking in some places
By Jennifer Kay Associated Press
WALNUTPORT, Pa.
- More than two hours before the movie began, families lined their
truck beds with blankets and set out lawn chairs for an evening of tailgating,
throwing footballs, and playing with their children on the playground.
The line for popcorn, soda and chili dogs at the concession stand was almost
as long as the line of several hundred cars snaking out onto the highway looking
for a space at Becky's Drive-In.
By 9:30 o'clock on a recent Friday night, Cindy Deppe and her brother Darrell
Beck - whose family has kept Becky's open since 1946 - were turning cars away.
Not a bad night in a business many feared was dying just a decade ago.
Gone are the old car-side speakers, although one hangs for sale for $20 above
the candy rack. Like those at most drive-in theaters today, Becky's moviegoers
tune into the movie on FM radio.
The blend of nostalgia with modern movie technology draws patrons from New
York, New Jersey, and all over eastern Pennsylvania to the Northampton County
theater, roughly 70 miles north of Philadelphia.
Those who make the trip say the drive-in is worth the distance.
"It's the only drive-in near where we live," said Adrienne Pollner,
15, whose family drove an hour from Phillipsburg, N.J. "It's a great way to
get away with friends and family," she said, looking up from a card game
with her twin sister, Susan, in the back of her sport-utility vehicle.
"It's a tradition to come to the drive-in," their mother, Joni
Pollner, said. "When they were little, we put them in their pajamas, and,
by the time the second movie came on, they were asleep. My parents did that when
we were kids. They'll remember this when they're grown up."
Becky's is one of approximately 430 drive-ins operating in the United States,
said Randy Loy, executive director of the United Drive-In Theatre Owners
Association.
While that's nowhere near the more than 4,000 drive-ins operating in 1958,
the industry's heyday, Loy said the 13 new theaters that have opened nationwide
since 1990 signal a thriving business.
Since the three-screen Vintage Drive-In opened in 1997 in East Avon, N.Y.,
about 20 miles south of Rochester, the owner, Paul Dean, said his business has
doubled every year, and each 200-car screen sells out on Saturday nights.
The Stardust Drive-In opening next April
in Watertown, Tenn., will save moviegoers a 30-mile trip to the multi-screen
indoor theaters in Nashville. Bumpers Drive-In, scheduled to open two
screens in the fall in Eldersburg, Md., will usher drive-in theaters into a new
age with digital movie projection.
Many drive-ins disappeared from major cites due to rising land values and
development, but they hung on in smaller towns using flea markets, mini-golf,
restaurants open year-round, and hay rides and cornfield mazes in the fall.
"We recommend to our members, if they can use their drive-in for another
use as well, to do so," Loy said. "Unless they really do a great
business during the season, a lot of times they need something. There are all
kinds of expenses that go year-round, and those kinds of things generate money
year-round."
Getting more family friendly movies on their opening weekends - including
this summer's blockbusters, Spiderman, The Sum of All Fears and Scooby-Doo
- has helped lure people back.
But the movie showing often has little to do with the drive-in's attraction.
Waiting in the waning light for the Mr. Deeds and Scooby-Doo
double feature to start, Becky's patrons said catching two new releases for only
$6 was a bargain, but they really came for the outdoor experience.
Parents watched their children lolling in the grass. A pony took riders on a
slow walk from the screen to the highway and back. In the privacy of their cars,
some moviegoers enjoyed things usually forbidden at the multiplex: smoking
cigarettes and talking on cell phones.
And once they come for one movie, they keep coming back.
"We came here before Becky's showed porn" for several years in the
1980s, said Sharon Bonser, of Palmerton, Pa. "Then we couldn't come here
for a while. But now we're back. And we've been here three weekends in a row
already."
From the "Tennessean" (Tuesday June 11, 2002)
Watertown is new site for couple's
drive-in
By ANDY HUMBLES Staff Writer
Barry Floyd said he was going to build a drive-in theater in Wilson County,
and now, he's setting his sights on Watertown.
Watertown is receptive to the idea, less than a month after Floyd withdrew
his rezoning request for a proposed drive-in just outside of Lebanon. The plan
drew strong opposition from neighborhood residents.
''We're looking at three sites in the city limits,'' Floyd said of Watertown.
''Every site has its own industrial quirks, but we won't have to worry about
houses or neighborhood. If we could get the land purchased in July, we could
start construction in September.''
That would allow Barry and his wife, Dawn, who are co-owners of Floyd
Entertainment Group, to open the theater by the spring of 2003.
''If there has been one complaint since I moved to Watertown five years ago,
it's that there is nothing to do,'' Watertown Chamber of Commerce President Jeff
Tunks said. ''We like Watertown being small; we want the population to stay
small. But it's an infrastructure growth, not people growth. The tax revenue
won't hurt either. I see a lot of people and I talk to a lot of people, and
everyone so far has been positive to a drive-in. I don't think it will be a hard
sell.''
Watertown Mayor Mike Jennings said the city ''will be happy to consider his
proposal when it gets to that stage.''
Floyd said the possible ''quirks'' at the proposed sites were elements such
as drainage or electrical issues. He said he did not think that would hinder the
possibility of going to Watertown. Floyd and Tunks declined to specify where the
sites are in Watertown.
With about 1,400 residents, Watertown is farther from Wilson County's main
population base than the location the Floyds were vying for last month off U.S.
70. However, the Floyds think it's a desirable location for those outside or in
other parts of Wilson County to come to.
''It's nine miles off the interstate, and there is a lot to be said for being
the only game in town,'' Barry Floyd said. ''Watertown thrives on tourism, with
the excursion trains going there and the mile-long yard sale. We'll try and tie
into that.''
''Since we withdrew our request, we have learned how much interest in the
county there is for this,'' Dawn Floyd said. ''We're hoping that will mean a
good clientele base within the county.''
From the "Tennessean" (Saturday May 18,
2002)
Drive-in proposal pulled
By ANDY HUMBLES Staff Writer LEBANON — Barry Floyd withdrew his request yesterday for a
zoning change to operate a proposed drive-in movie theater in Wilson County, but
he said he was not calling it quits.
''We're going to build a drive-in theater in Wilson County. I wouldn't have
sold my house and moved from Nashville to Lebanon if I wasn't,'' said Floyd,
part of the husband-and-wife Floyd Entertainment Group that would operate the
drive-in.
The location Floyd had requested, just off U.S. 70 where an old drive-in had
operated until the early 1970s, had angered neighborhood residents, who showed
up in force yesterday at a county Zoning Appeals Board hearing.
''We're glad it didn't go through. We hope he doesn't resubmit,'' said Ronnie
Sellars, whose house is about 120 feet from the drive-in property.
By withdrawing his request, Floyd can still resubmit his proposal to the
board for the drive-in at the same location.
He said he withdrew the request in part because he was not confident, with
only three of the five members of the Appeals Board present, that the vote would
be in his favor. He also discovered that his lot included spaces for about 228
cars, not the 350 that he originally planned.
Floyd said he was tentatively looking at several sites including an area off
U.S. 231 and said he wanted to explore other possibilities before going back to
the U.S. 70 location.
Still, the option of resubmitting a request for the U.S. 70 area concerns the
neighborhood residents, many of whom are senior citizens.
''There was a drive-in in the '50s and '60s, but the area is not suitable
because it's grown,'' Pheron Sandlin, 71, said. ''Traffic would be bad. It's bad
now, but that wouldn't be the only problem.''
''I'm a widow and I'd say there are at least 10 who are widows,'' said Louise
Jewel, 80, of the neighborhood.
''I don't think I'd feel safe. It's going to hurt property values. I don't
think anyone would want to buy it if they build a drive-in. I wouldn't.''
Drive-In Theatre
Proposal Withdrawn
A Wilson County neighborhood has stopped a man from building a drive-in theater
on Highway 70.
The giant twin screen
facility would have been built on land that was once home to a drive-in 30 years
ago.
Barry Floyd thought the
former drive-in theater site on Highway 70 east of Lebanon would be the perfect
spot to build another drive-in theater.
"It still has all the
ramping in place and one of the most expensive parts of building a drive-in is
the earth work in putting those ramps in," Floyd said.
But neighbors like Betty
Meadows didn't want the traffic, the trash or the bright lights. "Can you
imagine two to three hundred cars at night leaving?"
Floyd needed a zoning
change to build his drive-in, and the Wilson County planning and zoning board
was ready to hear all sides.
It wasn't necessary.
Floyd withdrew his
proposal after hearing there was no way he could win.
"We're very pleased,
because there were a lot of issues other than just the neighbors not wanting it
for nuisance," said Betty Meadows, who opposed the drive-in.
Floyd believes he could
have worked with residents and made the project work.
Now, it is time to search
for another location for what is a resurrection of an old idea -- one Floyd is
confident will work.
"In the last ten
years more than 45 drive-ins have reopened across the country, three here in the
state of Tennessee. Another is getting ready to reopen in Sparta," Floyd
said.
The old drive-in theater
property on Highway 70 will stay the way it is. There are reminders of what was
and what might have been.
Floyd said he already has
the equipment he needs to build his drive-in theater. All he's lacking is the
place to build it.
From the "Lebanon Democrat" newspaper -
Lebanon, Tennessee (April 17, 2002)
MAN MAKES PROPOSAL FOR DRIVE-IN:
by Clay Carey - Staff writer
A Davidson County businessman has requested permission from county planning
officials to operate a drive-in movie theater just outside Lebanon.
According to County Planner Tom Brashear, Antioch resident Barry Floyd has
asked the Wilson County Board of Zoning Appeals to allow him to operate the
theater on nine acres near behind Stroud's Building Center. His request is
expected to be addressed at the board's meeting Friday.
The land is owned by a Lebanon resident who, according to Brashear, will
lease it to Floyd if his request is granted. The property is zoned for
highway business use and was home to a drive-in theater in the early
1970's - before current zoning laws prohibited such an operation on land
zoned for highway business.
"There was a drive-in theater there but it's been out of commission for
some
time", Brashear noted.
He said the site is currently in a "dilapidated state" and not used
for
business purposes.
The movie screen that once stood on the property has been torn down, and the
only remnants of the previous theater are a handful of buildings. Brashear
said Floyd has indicated he would demolish those structures and replace them
with new buildings.
According to Brashear, Floyd had previously requested permission to
construct a new drive-in theater on agricultural land further down Carthage
Highway. He said county planning officials denied that request because of
traffic concerns, a lack of buffers between the proposed site and nearby
residential areas and the desire to maintain the "general character of the
area".
While the new proposed site does adjoin some residential areas, Brashear
said it is in a more commercial location than the original proposed site.
He sited the need for additional buffering and the potential for traffic
problems if the theater is successful as possible hurdles developers might
have to leap before gaining approval.
"To some degree, this site is already buffered by surrounding businesses,
he
explained, and at the point when the first theater was in full swing, the
road has seen that kind of traffic before."
"The fact that it had a drive-in on it before would give it an advantage
over the previous site", he continued.
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