Peaks of Otter movie too disruptive
Friday, February 12, 1999. The Roanoke Times
Story by Story by S.D. Harrington

National Park Service adamant about construction plans for $30 million film

Congressmen Bob Goodlatte and Virgil Goode couldn't persuade National Park Service officials to allow Columbia TriStar Pictures to film a $30 million movie starring Sandra Bullock and Garth Brooks at the Peaks of Otter Lodge.

The park service won't allow film crews to construct a temporary facade next to one of the lodge buildings. It would be too disruptive to visitors, said Gary Everhardt, superintendent of the Blue Ridge Parkway.

"I think Mr. Everhardt is just very inflexible on this thing," Goode said Friday after the meeting.

Goodlatte said they did convince Columbia TriStar and the park service to meet next week to see if a compromise can be reached.

Everhardt said Friday he would still consider a proposal if the film company is willing to compromise.

"But right now, it kind of rests in their court," he said.

Time is running out.

Columbia TriStar had said it needed to know by the end of Friday whether it could film its planned movie "28 Days" at the federally owned lodge.

Producers want to film most of the movie between March and May and need to secure a location to stay on schedule, said Mary Nelson, spokeswoman for the Virginia Film Office, which marketed the lodge to Columbia TriStar. The film office has estimated that the film project could pump $7 million to $10 million into the regional economy.

According to a film proposal, Bullock would star as a New York society columnist who checks into an alcohol rehabilitation center and falls in love with a baseball player, played by Brooks.

Columbia TriStar said the Peaks lodge -- with a small lake and Sharp Top mountain in the backdrop -- was an ideal setting for a fictional rehabilitation center, Nelson said.

"It needs to look pretty much cut off from civilization," she said.

But the film company wanted to embellish the lodge with temporary facades, a floating dock on the lake and a widened walking path that could accommodate a car.

Everhardt said he had no problem with letting Columbia TriStar use the lodge, but he said the facade and other changes would disrupt the peaceful atmosphere for parkway and lodge visitors.

Goodlatte said he suggested two other Western Virginia sites for Columbia TriStar to consider -- the 4-H Center at Smith Mountain Lake and the Mountain Lake Resort in Giles County, where "Dirty Dancing" was filmed in 1986.

He said his main objective is to keep the film in Western Virginia.

Bedford County and Roanoke officials have expressed frustration with the park service. They say the lodge will be well compensated for any short-term inconveniences.