Harbor Theatre
1377 Bay Street,
Florence,
OR
97439
1377 Bay Street,
Florence,
OR
97439
3 people
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It’s a clothing store these days.
The 4 screen multiplex recently closed, which leaves Florecne with no operating theatres. My family purchased the Harbor Theatre and Rhododendron Drive-In from Joe Lane in October of 1974. We ran the business until sale to James Genereaux in the early 1990’s. The Drive-In closed in 1979 and is now Miller Park. James closed the Harbor after many tough years fighting the 4-screener, and sold the building to On Your Feet shoe stores. Prior to the Sale, James carefully modified the building for retail use, with an eye on enabling a return to a theatre someday. There is a built up wood floor over the sloped and terraced theatre floor, and a false wall covering the stage and screen. The booth and cry room are intact. I removed the Motiograph AAA projectors, and they are now stored for possible future use.
The facade was recently repainted gray and the neon theatre sign covered with an outer face reading “Shoes”.
I am in the planning stages of creating a 35 year “return to the Rhody Drive-In” event on the actual drive-in site – Miller Park, for summer 2010. This will involve a large inflatable screen and high powered digital projection with FM Stereo Sound.
The Harbor Theater was an independently owned theater. Coming Attractions Theatres operates that 1980’s four screen multiplex dump in the new section of town. They ran the Harbor out of business.
Here is part of a March 2003 article about the closure. You have to sign up for the news service if you want to read the rest.
http://tinyurl.com/6yfrbo
The Harbor was one of my favorite classic theaters and when recently visiting Florence again, I was appaled to find it turned into the cheap shoe store! I would love to see it come back again someday. It’s a real shame. There is a new (and boring) multiplex in the new town section- I wonder if it was built by the same owners that owned the Harbor, or if it just ran the Harbor out of business?
The theater closed a couple of years ago and has reopened as a shoe store called “On Your Feet Footwear.” The building was remodeled in the inside and a false wall was created to cordon off the back room storeage area for the shoes. Other than that the classy sign is still there as well as the box office. If the shoe store ever were to close it looks like the theater could easily come back to life again showing movies. The building is located in the old town section of Florence and is in a popular walking area.