County exploring possible indoor/outdoor movie theater

Nevada State Parks Ranger Ben Johnson spoke to the County Commission meeting March 17 about obtaining a portable indoor/outdoor movie theater for the county.

?It?s a 16 x 20 inflatable portable screen that weighs about 65 pounds. Another box that a DVD can be placed in. It also has speakers,? he said.

Johnson said the portable theater also has the ability to transmit a signal to a radio, car radio, too, for handicapped persons who may want to watch the movie from their vehicle.

?We don?t have a movie theater in Lincoln County,? Johnson said. ?This would be available to agencies, school groups, private special interest groups, etc., for fund raising efforts. I think it?s a necessity that we don?t have in the county.?

Admission prices for viewing the film(s) is something each group using the theater would have to decide depending what copyright rules are.

The theater can be used in any of the communities of the county as well as open-air places and state parks. All that is needed in access to electricity. ?I think it would benefit all the county,? Johnson said, ?it is not group-specific. It has a lot of benefits, especially as we are going into our spring and summer season.?

He said he thought to buy the system outright would be better than try to rent one at given times.

Commissioners said they are willing to consider the idea and wanted to do more research and get more customer feedback before making any decisions. Several types of systems are available nationwide.

The Nye County Coalition has one of the outdoor theaters and has shown movies in Lincoln County in the past.