“We are ecstatic to be here today, to present our Dixie sign,” Ryan Levin, vice president of Levin Service Company that owns and operates the drive-in, told a crowd after a ribbon cutting ceremony Friday. “We have been in continuous business for almost 70 years now and when our sign blew down, it was as close to a local tragedy as you could get.”
Credit: Bryant Billing
Credit: Bryant Billing
Levin said many people were ‘up-in-arms about the sign’ and kept asking when it was going to be rebuilt.
“I am happy to say Harrison Twp. was fantastic and integral in getting this expedited and fast-tracked, so we could rebuild this wonderful homage to the original sign where it is not quite as big, but does so much more with our lighted sign,” he said.
Levin said many people are ecstatic about the return of this Northridge and Dayton landmark and thanks the community for their role in getting the sign rebuilt. He added that insurance and help from Harrison Twp. and Montgomery County played a large role as well.
Credit: Bryant Billing
Credit: Bryant Billing
The theater also had help from the Klusty Sign Associates of Sharonville last year. The theater’s original mid-century modern red and yellow sign had stood near the entrance of the drive-in since it opened in 1957.
Aside from regular maintenance, and replacement of the letterboards in 2019, the sign had remained the same through the years.
“North Dixie here, it needs some new freshness, needs some new blood and I am happy to be part of that, bringing that revitalization to Northridge here,” Levin said.
Credit: Tom Gilliam
Credit: Tom Gilliam
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