Utah will soon have only three drive-in theaters left
Sep 19, 2024, 9:00 PM | Updated: Sep 20, 2024, 8:46 am
Now that West Valley City approved redevelopment for the Redwood Road Drive-In, Utah will soon have only three drive-ins remaining. (Jessica Lowell/KSL NewsRadio)
(Jessica Lowell/KSL NewsRadio)
SALT LAKE CITY — Utah will soon be down one more drive-in theater, leaving just three remaining in the state.
West Valley City has approved redevelopment for the Redwood Road Drive-In Theatre and Swap Meet on Sept. 17. It’s unclear how much longer it will stay open as a drive-in.
The only ones that remain open are Echo Drive-in in Roosevelt, Erda Drive-in in Tooele, and Basin Drive-in in Mount Pleasant.
Molly Anderson and her husband own Basin Drive-In. Her husband is a fourth-generation drive-in owner.
She said seeing another drive-in close is a bit of a culture shock.
“[There are] some great memories for a lot of people growing up going to drive-ins,” Anderson said. “I remember when I was a kid my mom and dad would pop the big brown bag of popcorn and put it in the big brown grocery bag, and we’d all load up in the station wagon in our pajamas, and we’d go to the drive-in over in Orem.”
Redeveloping Utah drive-ins
The Redwood Road Drive-In is the second theater to be approved for redevelopment in many years. Riverdale’s beloved Motor Vu Drive-In Theatre & Swap Meet closed in 2022.
Much like the Redwood theater, Riverdale City leaders also got pushback when they approved redevelopment. A petition to keep the theater open in 2022 got thousands of signatures.
But now, City Administrator Steve Brooks says they don’t hear much about the closure.
“People are sad, you know, because that was kind of a landmark in the city, but it is what it is,” Brooks said. “I think they’ve accepted that, and it’s been really quiet.”
Current status of one of the remaining three
As for Basin Drive-In, Anderson said they don’t have any plans to sell their land or close shortly, which could pave the way for many more first dates and proposals.
“Kids that we know and love, that was their first date, and they ended up getting married,” Anderson said. “They let us know, ‘this was our first date.’ And then we had a couple of kids that have asked if they could do proposals at the drive-in and so it’s just been a lot of fun.”
Anderson said the theater will likely be open for a few more weeks before it closes for the season. They’re screening Twisters this weekend.
