The Silver Bow Drive-In is a true treasure for the people of Butte and Southwest Montana.

The drive-in has been open most summer nights since Mark and Holly Hansen started operating it in 1977. They have since gotten help from their family as they maintain the last drive-in in Montana.

In Butte, many of us take such a great thing for granted. We don’t even realize how wonderful of a thing it is to be able to go to a drive-in movie.

For most places, that is a thing of the past. It’s something they only see when watching Happy Days.

The drive-in survived when the Hansen family was forced to make a major investment to keep up with a switch from film to digital equipment to show movies. It survived when COVID threw everyone’s world upside down.

Today, the drive-in is facing another potential threat. Almost by accident, Mark and Holly Hansen found out that an unnamed development company has requested a conditional use permit for the 17 acres next to the drive-in at the Interstate-15 exit. The company wants to build a gas station and convenience store.

The Hansen family feels that will potentially end our drive-in days for good. The noise, lighting and omissions from a gas station, they say, would be devastating.

Now, the Hansen family says it doesn’t want to stop a gas station from building in Southwest Montana. They see the value in the construction jobs and the jobs that would be created by the construction.

It just seems too bad that such a construction could end something that is so very important to our community. 

The good news is we found out about it, though. We have an opportunity to speak up in support of the Silver Bow Drive-In at a zoning board meeting at 5:30 p.m. Thursday at the Council Chambers on the third floor of the Butte-Silver Bow Courthouse.

You can also email a letter of support to jthomas@bsb.mt.gov. 

Yesterday, I met with Holly and Mark Hansen and their son Jens at Perkins for a great conversation. Listen in as we talk about the history of the drive-in and the history of movie theaters in the Hansen family.

Listen as we discus running the drive-in over the years and what the drive-in means to our community.

Listen to hear how a gas station next door would be potentially devastating and how the Hansen family plans to fight to save the drive-in.

Today’s podcast is presented by Leskovar Honda, home of the 20-year, 200,000-mile warrantee.