County says Starlite Drive-In can’t open after all. Owner cites ‘miscommunication’
Chalk it up to miscommunication during uncertain times, says Blake Smith, the owner of Wichita’s Starlite Drive-In.
But the Starlite Drive-In won’t be opening this weekend after all.
Late on Thursday, after he’d announced that the drive-in had been cleared to open this weekend despite Sedgwick County’s stay-at-home order and had sold about 1,000 tickets, Smith said he was contacted by county manager Tom Stolz and told that the drive-in was not considered an “essential business” and that it should remain closed.
Smith, who said he had gotten the verbal okay from officials in both the county and city, said he understood and immediately agreed.
“There was just a little miscommunication there,” he said. “But if they say we shouldn’t, then we won’t.”
Stolz said on Friday that he became aware on Thursday of the Starlite’s plans but said drive-ins were definitely not among the essential businesses listed in the stay-at-home order.
He said he spoke with Smith, who was understanding. A major concern, he said, was that the drive-in planned to have the restrooms open, even though it was closing the concession stand and taking other precautions.
“People trying to help sometimes can make things worse in some regards,” Stolz said. “Blake was trying to hep, trying to do a community service. ... I talked to him this morning, and he’s good.”
If businesses are unsure about whether they can or should open during the stay-at-home order, Stolz said, they’re encouraged to call a special hot line the county has set up at 316-660-9000.
“The theme right now, for the health of the community, is, ‘Stay at home unless it’s something essential,’” Stolz said.
Smith said that his only goal in planning to open the drive-in was to give the community something positive. Since he’d planned to close the concessions stands, where he makes most of his profit, it wasn’t going to be a big money-maker.
But he said he wants to do what’s best for everyone, even if it’s closing for now.
“We want to do this right,” he said. “I want this to go away just like everybody else does.”
Early on Thursday, the drive-in theater at 3900 S. Hydraulic said on social media and on its recorded information line that that it had been cleared by county and city officials to open the drive-in Friday through Sunday of this weekend and that it planned to keep the concession stand closed, not pass out handsets and ask customers to buy their tickets online. It announced ticket prices and the four movies it would show on its two screens.
But late on Thursday, county spokesman Van Williams said that the Starlite is “not considered an essential business” under the Sedgwick County’s stay-at-home order, which took effect on Wednesday.
Smith said he is investigating how to refund the tickets that were purchased online and will do so, though he warned that it’s a complex process and it might take a few days to get everyone’s money back.
This story was originally published March 26, 2020 at 10:38 PM.
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