I have been obsessed with finding this drive-in lot since I started this site over 20 years ago. I just checked Cinema Treasures and a poster named Kenmore made a great point in a 2020 submission. M-28 was on a different route when the drive-in would have been open. The folks who have posted on my site disagreed on whether the DI was North or South of M-28. I believe the reason for that is due to the re-routing of M-28 which is not obvious looking at the current map (2022).
When you reconcile those facts, they are in a sense both right. The drive-in was SOUTH of where M-28 sits NOW, but NORTH of where it was routed THEN which is basically Prospect St. Looking at the 1953 aerial, that newer section of M-28 did not exist. The PROBLEM with the 1953 aerial is that there is no sign of a drive-in being constructed that I can see.
So, if the 1954 opening date is correct, it must have been a hurry-up job to get it up and running. Unfortunately there is a gap on historical aerials between 1953 and 1981. The other thing working against this theory is the 1959 Topo Map shows nothing in terms of a shape or designation of a drive-in theater. Topo maps USUALLY noted both as Drive-Ins were great landmarks for aviation due to their distinctive footprint as viewed from the air.
In the end, I am positive this place existed but there is still mystery surrounding the location.