Saturday, I saw on Google Maps that the remains of the NorWest Drive-In in the southeast corner of Broomfield CO were still visible. I don’t know why I never thought to take pictures of what’s left, so off I went.
The former entrance road to the NorWest (also spelled Nor’West or Nor-West) was blocked by heavy construction equipment when I arrived. I feared that I had arrived too late, but the work was just a flood control project for Nissen Creek, which runs just south of the old drive-in.
I had written about the NorWest in my book, Drive-Ins of Colorado. It was one of those drive-ins that chased movie patrons into suburbia, built by Leonard Steele and opened in 1967. Long story short, the drive-in was first sold in 1969 and passed through some corporate owners until Commonwealth Theatres dumped it at the end of 1986. Bill Holshoe, who already owned the 88 Drive-In in nearby Commerce City, was the final owner, running the NorWest through the end of 1996.
Holshoe closed the NorWest because civic leaders wanted to clear the way for some developer’s proposed indoor ice rink complex. That never happened, but the drive-in never reopened. According to some 2016 photos posted at CinemaTreasures.org, the snack bar building was still pretty well intact at that point. That building was removed by 2023.
The sturdy concrete screen support blocks, with short bits of metal jutting out, were all still there. Now their only audience was the prairie dog town that has taken over the drive-in site. As I walked to the remains of the concession building, I could hear annoyed yips from both directions, the first time I’ve encountered prairie dog complaints in stereo.
The tiles on the concession/restroom/projection building (see below) were in good shape, probably because they haven’t been exposed to the weather for many years. There was a new gravel path to 121st Place to the north, probably for the workers who dismantled the building. I couldn’t find any trace of speaker poles, and the prairie dog holes were more noticeable than the ramps.
If you really want a piece of drive-in history, there were a few loose tile pieces near the building foundation, but that seems pretty extreme to me. But if you just want to wade past the prairie dogs to stand and look in the direction of the old screen, with the Rocky Mountains in the distance, you could go there and imagine what it all must have been like.
