LANSING, MI (WTVB) – Governor Gretchen Whitmer announced Friday that six Michigan preservation projects have been honored with the 2026 Governor’s Awards for Historic Preservation during a ceremony in Heritage Hall at the Michigan State Capitol.
Hosted by the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO), the annual program recognizes standout efforts to protect and rehabilitate culturally significant sites that define the state’s unique identity.
This year’s diverse group of honorees represents communities across both peninsulas, including Clarkston, Coldwater, Detroit, Isle Royale, Lansing, and Northfield Township.
A standout moment of the ceremony was the recognition of the Capri Drive-In Theater in Coldwater, which received an award for its exemplary long-term stewardship. Recently added to the National Register of Historic Places as the first drive-in theater in Michigan to receive such an honor, the family-owned landmark was celebrated for maintaining its authentic mid-century character. For more than 50-years the theater has preserved its original snack bar and iconic screen, serving as a vital cultural destination that draws visitors from over 150 miles away to experience a nearly vanished era of American cinema.
In 1964, John and Mary Magocs opened the Capri Drive-In on the west side of Coldwater along highway US-12. The property included a single screen, folded plate roof ticket building, a concessions stand, a neon sign on the highway, and room for 800 cars. Operating the Capri was a family affair and the Magocs, along with their sons John Jr. and Tom, spent many nights together running the theater.
In 1980, the family twinned the theater when they moved and installed a second screen tower from a former drive-in near Detroit.
The Capri Drive-In is the last standing drive-in theater in southwest Michigan and one of only six operating statewide.
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