Historic theater faces tough competition

LOGANSPORT, Ind. (WLFI) - The Logansport City Council gave the go-ahead for a new movie theater to be built in the city, but not everyone is excited for the changes.

The historic State Theater has been part of Logansport's history for 72 years but with a new five-screen, state-of-the-art movie theater coming to the city, competition will be tough.

Owner of the State Theater, Billy Alger, said the movie business isn't always a fair one.

"With 'Twilight' coming out in November, if they open in time they'll get it and we won't," Alger said. "If we could get it and they could get it, it'd be fair but it just doesn't work fair."

Logansport resident George Odom said he spent a lot of his childhood watching movies on the big screens of the State and said he hopes both theaters have a future in Logansport.

"We would just hate to lose this theater," Odom said about the State. "It's the last one and we'll probably lose the Skyline Theater, I think that's what they call it. On the other side we live out east on the east side and we like to see the new buildings going up and if it does come in I hope they both can go but I don't see how it would ever work with both of them."

Alger said when he bought the State he had big plans to transfer all the projectors to 3-D, but if he can't get popular movies, he said he'll have to put those plans on hold.

"It's not worth the $180,000 investment to buy new projectors and it's another $120,000 to buy all new seats. It just simply isn't worth it to have one or two films," Alger said.

Alger said the city council has been supportive in helping him look at ways to stay open despite the tough competition of a brand new theater.

City Council president Charlie Hastings said the controversial theater, which will use tax increment funds to help pay for initial costs, will bring new business to Logansport.

Hastings said the council doesn't want to see old businesses close, but it's a part of life.

"When Walmart came people said, 'Oh we don't want Walmart.' When Home Depot came people said, 'Oh you're going to put lumber yards out of business.' Every time you get a new business somebody said, 'Oh you're going to hurt this, you're going to hurt that.' That's just competition and business," Hastings said.

Hastings said city council members will have the final vote on the project Wednesday night.

He said construction will start soon and said he expects the project to be completed this winter.