Hiway Theater Inc Information

The Hiway is governed by its local board of directors (see below). That board invited Renew Theaters to assume management of the Hiway in order to make it financially sustainable. Renew agreed and started managing the Hiway in mid-May 2013. Renew is a nonprofit, 501(c)3 tax-exempt, management company, which also operates the Ambler Theater and the County Theater. Renew makes no profit. Renew was created to allow the same management team to operate multiple theaters, while allowing each theater to maintain its own separate, local identity. The Renew Board of Directors is run by its client theaters. Again, Renew makes no profit - it is a "pass through" company that supplies services at cost. Renew pays its staff, of course, which currently consists of 8 full time admin staff, 6 full time managers, and approx 35 part-time theater staff. The administrative staff and managers have primary duties at one theater, but cross-train to cover vacations and turnover and cooperative activities. The separate theaters work with each other in various ways, particularly on special programming. By running three theaters, Renew will bring cost efficiency to the Hiway's operations. That cost efficiency is needed to make the Hiway financially sustainable. Members of the Hiway Theater receive reduced admission prices at the other Renew theaters. However, each theater continues to operate as its own separate entity. The theaters are "affiliated," siblings, if you will. As part of Renew's commitment to the Hiway, Executive Director John Toner made a significant gift to the Hiway's Screen Saver campaign to help the theater convert to Digital Cinema. This gift, together with hundreds of generous gifts from the community, paid for the installation of digital equipment during the last week of May. This conversion to Digital Cinema was necessary for the Hiway to stay in business.