Submitted by DifferenceIll8124 t3_zvso3a in newjersey
Just considering the logistics of it. I see a good number of great Drive-In's in PA, and NY, but there's definitely a scarcity of still functioning ones in NJ (as far as I'm aware). I expected to see a boom during and after COVID, but I haven't. What keeps them from staying afloat in our state as opposed to the rest of the tri-state?
What are the obstacles you'd face opening a drive-in in NJ?
That makes sense. But also sucks considering all anyone's getting on that land are apartments and data storehouses lol
I don't think a bunch of idling cars is any better.
Your car is supposed to be off at a drive-in…
supposed to, but cars are not comfortable off when its hot or frigid outside. source: i have observed a wawa parking lot.
I remember drive ins that advertised free in car heaters. And in the summer people set up lawn chairs and sat outside
But, unfortunately, those are the only operations that can pay the ever increasing property taxes and still generate a profit for the owners.
The drive in I went to as a kid was bought and torn down by a mall to make it a parking lot.
Think of the taxes on that much land....
Half of Bergen County's population was conceived at the old Drive-In in Paramus!
Now parking for GSP.
I occasionally go to the one in Warwick (NY). They run it as a double feature and second run theater. I think they make most of their money off concessions.
It seems like even normal movie theaters are struggling now. There’s one by me that converted one screen to a stage and screen so they can do other things like comedy nights and RHPS
I definitely agree that theater's are struggling. But now would be a great time for theater industry to innovate a little. Easier said than done though, i suppose. Are the theater + comedy night combos working?
The community would really respond to the different entertainment options but they do a piss poor job of advertising. Like they’ll post in one town Facebook group and maybe put it on the marquee. It’s really a shame how awful their marketing is
>There’s one by me that converted one screen to a stage and screen so they can do other things like comedy nights and RHPS
That sounds much better, tbh. As far as I know, the iPic in Fort Lee shows UFC and other big events, I would definitely go to one of those. I remember someone from Canada telling me they used to watch WWF pay per views and other big sporting events at the local theater and i always thought that was cool. They also show some classic movies at iPic. I think AMC does too but both seem to have stopped doing it or advertising as much
Here in Bergen County the AMCs make big money on Fathom Events showing of the Metropolitan Opera. You couldn’t drag me to one but opera fans do it because it’s a fraction of the cost of seeing it at the Met.
Movies don't hold the attention anymore TikTok and the like get all the attention these days young people somehow find movies boring.
There's a few in New Jersey already! I know there's the one that's in Vineland that's been there for decades, and I remember reading they had opened a few during the pandemic. I think it's at least one other in Newark?
Delsea Drive In movie theater is open in the warmer months. C’mon down.
Delseadrive-in.com
There was one in newark during the pandemic. Idk if it stuck around. I had heard it was close to MacArthur so not dark and pretty noisy.
Yeah, I know about Vineland's but sadly that other one in Newark seems to be out of commission. The business hasn't showed any movies since 2021, and the website is oddly inactive with no real explanation why? There've recently pivoted to doing some kind of Christmas lightshow but everything else seems dead.
Shame.
Considering that we had loads of them, and they all went out of business because they couldn't compete well enough to pay the bills and turn a profit, probably "not very."
(And that was before they had to compete with stay-at-home streaming services...they were just driven out of business by Blockbuster!)
The IDEA is great but there would be more drive ins if it was popular and profitable. My family doesn’t even enjoy going to the movie theater. I just asked the if they wanted to go see avatar and they looked at me like I told them to scrub the floors. We have been to Warwick for the experience but it’s not something we care to do more often.
Lol it kind of just sounds like you guys aren't movie people😅 But no, I get what you mean. Though, I feel like Drive-Ins are specifically for those who enjoy the go-out-as-group movie experience. If someone doesn't like that, they won't really get much enjoyment from it.
That’s the problem. We ARE movie people. But the allure of going out to the movies is just gone and I think that has a lot to do with the pandemic. We ended up upgrading our home theater since we were “stuck” at home so it’s hard to think about going out and sitting in sticky seats with a bunch of strangers, when I can sit in my comfy couch and marathon 3 movies. Sometimes I have to wait to see a movie like Wakanda, and that’s weird because I’ve been to every opening night marvel movie since I can remember. A lot of people have changed their movie viewing habits and drive-in are more of an experience based on nostalgia. Once you’ve experienced a drive-in you cross it off your list and move on to the next bucket list item.
That's true. Retention is probably very hard considering that old school movie watching culture isn't the same.
I’ve been in Consumer Audio for years and specialize in Home Theater/ Surround Sound. My system is worth a small fortune but I always go to a good theater to see new releases. Even my system cannot equal the picture quality of a Dolby projector ($200K) and and theatrical Atmos. ($250K). Finally, streaming movies are compressed in both video and audio.
Ofc home audio does not equal Dolby digital sound system. I never said that. What i mean is that there hasn’t been a movie since rise of skywalker that has made us want to go to the movies. I thought mayyybe Avatar would be a good option because that should be seen in the big screen with amazing sound, but no. So if something like avatar can’t get us out to the movies, idk what would. And I’m not alone in that sentiment.
I hear you. "Thor: Love and Thunder" grossed far more overseas than in the US. "Avatar 2" is also not doing well domestically. However, both got bad reviews and word of mouth. IMHO, "Avatar 2" sucked except for the amazing CG. I've told all my friends to avoid it.
On the other hand, "Top Gun", "Wakanda Forever" "Doctor Strange 2" and "Minions" all did extremely well domestically. Clearly millions of Americans want to see blockbusters in a theater.
At the end of the day, I think that the studios are going to reevaluate how much they spend on blockbusters and whether to make one or not. An MCU film no longer means an almost guaranteed $1B gross. Disney is now putting more focus on TV Series than movies.
Avatar is the perfect example of why NOT to go to a drive in. You cannot recreate the high quality Dolby sound and 3D in a car. Much the same with superhero blockbusters.
I went to the one in Vineland a few years back. I think the idea is more fun than the execution. And now that I went and tried it, the idea isn’t even fun anymore. So I’m not sure they get many repeat visitors.
The sound quality was really poor. Bad enough that people left mid-movie. And once cars started leaving, the headlights made it hard to see the screen. Can’t see, can’t hear, not really able to watch much of the movie at all. Better to go to a theatre or watch from home, in my opinion.
I would absolutley love a north Jersey drive in. I make the hour drive to Warwick and the 1.5 hour drive to the Circle or Mahoning drive ins in PA at least twice a month in the summer. I LOVE going to the drive in. It largely depends on the programming though, I especially love the stuff they show at Mahoning and how you can camp overnight. I feel like I'm an outlier though.
I'm with you. It may be a dying industry but from my perspective the newer generations LIKE old school experiences as long as they have a new twist/flash coat of paint on them. That's literally hipster culture lol. Camping overnight sounds great if there's more things going on.
So maybe you start out as a popup event. Don’t buy property. Scout locations with a blank white wall that you can project on. Book it as an experience and move it around the state.
There is one in Warwick NY. Just over the state line from Sussex and Passaic counties. It has 3 screens and is packed on the weekends. It is still a desirable outing for a family. I watched this drive-in grow from one single screen, and the single speakers that actually hung on the windows do the three screens it has today. If you have the land, I think it would be a gold mine.
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Can you make enough money to resist the temptation of selling that huge piece of commercially zoned property?
Probably not unfortunately.
I know Demarest Farms in Hillsdale had one running during the summer months in 2020 and 2021, looked like in 2022 they didn’t have it fully operational but maybe with enough interest they will bring it back up in 2023. It was only a single screen and they were playing older movies not new releases but was still fun!
Make it double as a music venue
That probably wouldn't work because even if you had the sound being transmitted to the car stereo everyone would be playing their car stereo at full volume and neighbors close to the theater would be complaining.
I don't think they meant a listen party for cars, I think they meant something more like an outdoor concert environment? Especially considering drive-ins thrive at the same time of year as outdoor music festivals (summer & spring)
I personally don’t see the appeal of a drive in, especially with gas as expensive as it is. Plus NJ has good internet connectivity all over the state so I think most people would rather stream in the comfort of their homes. It’s what has kept me out of the theaters for the past few years.
A drive-in is kind of a novelty experience. I won't say it's "better" than a movie night with friends at home if that's all someone wants. But I do think it's more enjoyable for a group of friends than an indoor movie theater experience. When I go to the theater with friends everyone kind of just dissapears into the crowd once the lights go out, for the most part. It also gets people out of the house, and depending on what of events/concessions the drive-in offers you could have alot of fun with that. Today may be an stay-at-home age, but more people are at least trying to get out more for their nightlife, and social experiences are gaining more and more traction.
That's also why people don't know all.their neighbors on the street they live on anymore. Everyone stays home, kids sit around playing games on line etc.
In works in Warwick for a few reasons.
I like drive ins. Not sure how well I’d see the screen in my car and my car isn’t big enough to make out in
Spots are big enough that you can put some chairs out in front of your car to watch the movie. I enjoy going for horror movies. The drive back to civilization makes you wonder if you’ll make it back bc now you’re wondering what’s lurking in every shadow
>4) more pick up trucks in Warwick.
It also could be why people go there. You could have people laying in the back with a thin sheet of plywood covering them so they get in for free while the two people in the cab of the truck pay. Then divide the cost five to six ways depending on.how many people snuck in.
It's what we did in my friend's truck.
So the key to keeping them going is to steal admission revenue from them?
You can also stack three kids on each others shoulder with a trench coat
😁😆😅
Might have a shot if you turned it into a mass EV charging station but otherwise I think the cost of land would be too high.
Ngl that's creative, but something about that seems so wrong🤣😅
Hmmm young children all the way up to the millennials I know don't even watch movies. I think this may be going the way of the typewriter.
In Person Movie Theaters are a dying industry and have been for the last 45 years.
The industry makes more from licensing and streaming that it does from exhibition (theatres) as they call it. they are still stuck in a 1960's mindset where theatres would pay more than 100% of the ticketed gate just to get the "exclusive" right to show a "blockbuster" in a local area.
Theatres did that and made the majority of their profits off of the concessions,example a 50lb bag of commercial theatre popping corn costs less than $20. The cost of the popping corn in a big bucket of popcorn is about 3-4 cents, add to that the artificial butter,salt, power to pop the corn, labor and the cost of the bucket is still the largest expense. BUT, out of what might seem like a huge profit, you still have to pay for the taxes, insurance and all the rest of the overhead so that huge profit is diminished to a very small amount.
More specifically to your original question, why not in NJ?
#1 taxes, BOTH property and sales taxes and 'sin" fees on tickets. Most states have never repealed the "sin" fees which were first added to the price of tickets in the 30's 40's, 50"s & 60"s. You know, Moving pictures were the work of the devil and encouraged the downfall of everything good& just. (lol)
Not positive about all of NJ's counties, been away from the business for the last 30 years, but since there are still blue laws, I will bet the "sin" fees were never done away with (once a govt gets a fee or tax started it never goes away, especially hidden ones).
#2 Insurance
#3 Local licensing - some cities & counties require movie theatres have an "Adult Entertainment Establishment" license that has to be renewed on a regular basis....again tha t varies with the exact local.
All those are why you can get a new streaming movie at home for less than the price of one ticket at a movie theatre...
#4 The Climate and bugs - not conductive to a year round business.
Taxes, but honestly if you want info check out the Delaware drive in theater in Vineland, they’ve been making it work
The experience. Theaters are struggling to attract viewers despite making the theaters plush, the seats comfortable, etc. Hard to compete with sitting on the couch in your PJs and loved ones watching a movie stream. Sitting in my with a crappy speaker watching a bunch of other cars watching the movie? No thanks. It was fun 50 years ago, but not since.
I just don't see the point of a drive in theater. For one thing you have to deal with all the weather issues - if it's too hot, too cold, raining, etc. you can't go. And if you go with kids they can't see anything from the back seat of the car. I just don't get what advantages there would be over just going to a regular movie theater.
We don’t have the climate for it here. Right now, it’s too cold, meaning you’d have people idling their cars for 2-3 hours. In the summer, you’ll have some idling for air condition. I’d love it, but we are just not positioned geographically for it. Besides, the real estate alone will cap the amount of cars and it’ll cost tons per person/vehicle.
COAH. Towns are being court ordered to provide prescribed numbers of affordable housing units. The problem is that new developers only have to provide 20% affordable housing units. So to get 20 units they can build 80 luxury units. Look around...any open land is being bought up by developers for housing.
One issue is weather; In this part of the US drive-ins really only work in summer. Would you want to sit in your car watching a movie this past week?
Otherwise:
Honestly I think the one-off or weekly summer events at the beach or on a rooftop in various places around the state in summer are a better solution than a dedicated drive in.
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Weather.
Its not the 1950, we don't need drive ins when the regular theaters are going bankrupt
JustSomeGuy_56 t1_j1qvv7v wrote
The cost of real estate. At one tome there were lots of drive-ins in NJ. Most have closed because the real estate was worth more than the business.