This is great news from KSN, Wichita’s News Leader. The Starlite Drive-In Theatre, closed and apparently sold in a questionable turn of events, was rescued at the last minute and celebrated its Grand Opening under new ownership last weekend. And I’ve got more video than I can use, so also check out the following sources.

Blake Smith, who also owns the Admiral Twin Drive-In in Tulsa OK, told KFDI that he was excited to get started. “It got stange last year — and I didn’t even realize — and then everybody went crazy and it kinda got to me, and…it’s funny how things work out.” KFDI also posted a Facebook video of the ribbon cutting.

As KWCH reported, the Starlite already had a cold opening – really cold – on March 1. It wrote that “Smith and his staff have been working to get the south Wichita theater up and running since December.” They also have video of that frosty, happy event. Enjoy!

The latest news from KSNW, Wichita’s News Leader, about the Starlite Drive-In Theatre there is that over 200 residents rallied at a nearby park to protest its shutdown. Last month, owner Chuck Bucinski abruptly closed for the season, announced that the drive-in would not reopen, and scheduled an equipment auction for Nov. 13.

The protesters were joined by Rick Cohen, owner of Lockport NY’s Transit Drive-In, occasional contributor to this blog, and generally nice guy. Cohen told KSNW, “There’s no other drive-in theater like this in the country, it’s just designed, engineered and built to the highest standards in the drive in industry.”

According to the Wichita Eagle, Cohen and Blake Smith, co-owner of the Admiral Twin Drive-In in Tulsa OK, have extended a cash offer starting at $750,000 to purchase the Starlite from Bucinski and keep it running. They had been separately trying to buy the Starlite from longtime owner Jim Goble before he died of cancer in 2015.

I hadn’t mentioned that Eagle story or other followups because I’m just pessimistic about this whole situation. Bucinski has been quiet since making the closing announcements, and my guess is that his profitable sale of the Starlite’s land is already wrapped up. I don’t see any evidence that public protests are going to change his mind. I sincerely hope that I’m wrong.

At any rate, here’s one more chance to get a video glance at how the Starlite looks today. Just in case it’s our last look at a Wichita landmark.

Bad news from the Wichita Eagle, which reported today that the Starlite Drive-In Theatre has turned off its projectors for the last time. That came on the heels of this morning’s email from the Starlite which said, “This was a difficult decision many years in the making with declining attendance and rapidly rising costs of maintenance and technology.”

The Eagle wrote that owner Chuck Bucinski told his employees that “the theater has been in financial trouble since the digital projectors were installed.” Which seems odd considering that those projectors should have been at least subsidized by the community fundraising the Starlite mounted at the time, when it was still owned by Jim Goble. That’s all according to the article, which said Bucinski bought the place in 2016.

Just a few months ago, Bucinski filed to change the Starlite’s zoning to allow for industrial and commercial uses for the drive-in land. At the time, he said the move was “strictly for estate-planning purposes”.

It’s a darned shame that Wichita is going to lose its only drive-in to ozoners’ eternal enemy – a landowner with more profitable plans for his property. Since that email suggested that the decision had been made a long time ago, it’s doubly sad that that loyal viewers were denied the opportunity to say goodbye in a farewell season, which would have boosted attendance and possibly boosted some sympathy for Bucinski. Instead, if he’s remembered at all, he’ll be known as the guy who turned out the lights at the Starlite.