2 Connecticut drive-ins to open for season; Pleasant Valley sold
Here come Super Mario Brothers and Dungeons and Dragons: The 2023 outdoor movie season opens on Friday at Mansfield Drive-In.
The drive-in at 228 Stafford Road will show double features on three screens on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays until the school year ends, when it will expand to seven days a week, according to General Manager Naomi Jungden.
But while the Mansfield theater revs up with confidence, the overall drive-in landscape in the state isn’t as firmly nailed down. The state has only three permanent drive-in theaters left: in Mansfield and Barkhamsted, which show first-run films, and Southington, which shows classic films.
Donna McGrane, owner of the one-screen Pleasant Valley Drive-In in Barkhamsted, posted on the drive-in’s website that the property the drive-in sits on has been sold.
“It is with great sadness that I tell you that after 27 years, I will no longer own and operate the Pleasant Valley Drive-In Theater,” McGrane wrote. “The property, after belonging to the same family for many many years, was sold in December 2022. The property is now owned by Pleasant Valley Properties LLC.”
In response to a Facebook post on the matter, McGrane responded “It was not my choice to leave.” McGrane, who leased the drive-in land, could not be reached to clarify that comment.
Pleasant Valley Properties’ three members are listed on bizapedia.com as David Dzenutis, Anna Smolen and Peter Driscoll.
A since-removed post on Facebook, signed “Anna and David,” stated that the revamped drive-in would reopen on an undefined date.
“New ownership is professionally revamping the property, which was long overdue. You’ll love the upcoming, new changes. We look forward to meeting you later this spring!” the post read.
Nonetheless, hundreds of fans of Pleasant Valley gathered online to worry about the drive-in’s future.
None of the three members could be reached for comment.
Pleasant Valley Properties, based at 512 Cherry Brook Road in Canton, bought 47.96 acres of land on River Road in Barkhamsted for $800,000 on Dec. 12, according to town records. The drive-in occupies 4.2 acres of that land.
The land’s previous owner was the estate of Catherine K. Jones. Jones died in 2021. The Jones family had owned the land since 1948, according to the land records.
Southington, Manchester
Southington Drive-In, at 995 Meriden-Waterbury Turnpike, will debut its 14th season of Saturday night screenings of family-friendly classics on June 3. The season will end Sept. 2, according to Dawn Miceli, vice chair of the Southington Drive-In Committee.
“Our opening movie, as always, will be ‘Jaws.’ We like to start our season off with this classic thriller and it always garners a packed house,” Miceli said.
Miceli said the remaining schedule will be posted in the coming weeks.
That theater is a not-for-profit venture operated by the town Parks and Recreations Department. Volunteers from local nonprofits and civic organizations staff the cinema to raise funds for their groups. Screenings are accompanied by kids’ activities.
Another pop-up drive-in — set up outside the Parkade Cinemas in Manchester as a result of pandemic-era social-distancing protocols — will have a few outdoor screenings.
Ali Davis, owner at Parkade, said on Monday “we will be having the drive-in this year but only a few times per month, starting in May, Memorial weekend.”
At Mansfield, Jungden is planning some special events: a “4/20” stoner-movie night on April 20 and autumn screenings of “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” and Christmas films.
For a film lineup in Mansfield, visit mansfielddrivein.com. Admission is $13 for adults, $9 for ages 4 to 11 and free for younger. Dogs are welcome at the drive-in, but not at the Sunday-morning flea markets.
Susan Dunne can be reached at sdunne@courant.com.