TIFFIN, Ohio — The coronavirus prompted movie theaters to shut down for months while outdoor options like drive-ins became more popular.
Now, one community staple in Tiffin is getting some major upgrades.
Nothing says Americana quite like pulling into a spot at your local drive-in theater. This is why Michael Cole, from Findlay, decided to buy the Tiffin Drive-In Theater last month.
With the purchase, Cole has promised a lengthy list of overdue improvements with a $200,000 investment.
But the biggest upgrade he has in mind is demolishing and replacing the main movie screen, which still has the original wood structure that was built back in 1949.
"Repairing it was really out of the question. So, we've decided rather than waiting to do the screen, we're going to jump into right away and bring this old screen and put up a new one in the next few weeks," Cole said.
The second screen will also be replaced as well.
Cole said the pandemic has been a huge boon for the drive-in industry.
But because so few new movies are being released, he doesn't know if the season will be extended past Halloween.
"Our work with the booking agents has really been a week to week thing, we just haven't known. So, that's not going to be anything new that we don't know from week to week, as we go through October and into November with what we do. We'll just have to make those decisions as they come," Cole explained.
The goal is for construction to be completed and have the new screen up and running sometime in October to at least squeeze in a few more showings before their 2020 season wraps up.