The Twilight Drive-In, located in Langley, has been in operation since 2005 and is the last remaining movie theatre of its kind in B.C.
Following the announcement June 15 that it would be closing after the 2024 season, Metro Vancouverites have been calling upon someone, anyone, to intervene and local government has taken notice.
"Everybody's aware of the discussions that have been occurring online," said Langley Mayor Woodward at a recent Township Council meeting during which he proposed that staff work with the Twilight property owners and operators to present options to Council for saving the business. "It really stands out as something we need to do for Aldergrove and all the people who have expressed how much they care about this as a part of Langley."
Woodward has reportedly already met with the Twilight owners to learn about the business and says that 16.8 per cent of the drive-in's customer base is from Langley-Aldergrove with the remaining 83.2 per cent hailing from the rest of the Lower Mainland and even Vancouver Island.
"This business stands out in terms of how it's valued and the role it plays with tourism to the Aldergrove area," he said, calling the drive-in "a great unique destination for Aldergrove."
The motion to explore options for saving the Twilight Drive-In passed unanimously but there were a few concerns raised by other councillors.
One councillor wanted to know if the options presented by staff would include tax grants, permission to set up a business on ALR land, or Council assuming the operation of the business.
The consensus from staff was that those options were unlikely because, under the current ownership, the business is a for-profit entity and not a permitted use for ALR land.
However, a staff member did say they "can't rule anything out."
"The primary challenge is the value of the land on which the program is situated," he explained. Which is the reason the Twilight owners gave for closing up shop. In a Facebook announcement post, they alleged the closure is due to a 260 per cent increase in property taxes over the last three years. "With 72 per cent this year alone, our landlord has informed us that they will not be renewing our lease," reads the post.
"We're not in the business of running these sorts of operations so it's really the social and community value of the institution itself that we're trying to preserve," the staff member clarifies. "We're looking beyond the current horizons to see if there are other options."
Though, at this time, no one is certain what those options will look like.
No decisions will be made until staff reconvene with the council to present the options and there is no date set for that meeting but Mayor Woodward says that he believes the drive-in "merits some special consideration within the bounds of not setting a precedent of helping business--there's nothing we can do about property taxes," he said, adding, "hopefully, the only precedent it sets is that we care and we get things done."
