COOK— Nearly a year after floodwaters silenced the projectors and shuttered the doors of the historic Comet Theater, signs of life are returning to the heart of downtown Cook. On Friday, May 2, the boutique and coffee shop attached to the Comet officially reopened—marking the first major step in a long road to recovery following the devastating June 2024 flood.
For co-owners Ryan and Steph Horner, it’s the kind of reopening that feels like both a comeback and a clean slate.
“We just been rushing,” Ryan said. “The last couple months have been really hectic, trying to get all the cupboards in and the countertops and finish up the painting and put out the merchandise and figure out all the stuff that we missed.”
The Horners purchased the Comet in 2023 and were just hitting their stride when the flood forced everything to a halt. But instead of simply restoring what was lost, they used the downtime to reimagine the space.
“It gave us opportunity to just start everything from scratch,” Ryan said. “New paint, new walls, new ideas, to just try to make it ours.”
They’ve reconfigured the layout to reflect that vision.
“We’re getting rid of that movie counter,” Ryan said. “All of our movie stuff is gonna be up front.” The new setup allows all retail, concessions, and ticketing to run through one modernized counter space, making things more efficient for both customers and staff. Customers will now be able to easily use a credit card for their movie-related purchases.
The boutique is stocked with a mix of fashion items, lake-themed gifts, books, stickers, and snack items.
“We got some lake-type stuff, and we still have popcorn like we make for the theater. And lots of different gift type stuff,” Ryan said. “Some fancy stickers and books and stuff like that. If you like to have a cocktail every now and then, we have some cocktail accessories.” Merchandise had been moved out before the flood got too high, which proved to be a saving grace.“We didn’t lose any merchandise whatsoever,” he said. “If we had to rebuy all that stuff we probably would have been sunk.”
Community support has played a big role in the rebuilding process. Former owners John Metza and Carol Carlson came back to help repaint, redo the floors, and organize the shop for reopening.
“That was huge,” Ryan said.
Contractor Nicholas Bender tackled the structural and technical repairs.
“He basically did all the stuff that I didn’t know how to do,” Ryan said. “Once we tore everything apart, we’d say ‘Boy, this isn’t very good in here.’ It was all just kind of like patched together and a little sketchy.”
Ryan also expressed the Horners’ thanks to all of the people who volunteered during the flood, clean-up, and renovations. He said they were even grateful of people who stopped by to offer words of support or merely peek through the windows to see how it was coming along.
The theater itself is still under renovation, but progress is coming. Plans include laying down epoxy flooring and reinstalling the center section of seats, about 63 of them, Ryan said.
“I’m hoping that we can get those seats installed and maybe do limited movies this summer,” Ryan said. “We’ve still got to do the whole theater part, but we’re starting to work on that here in the next couple days.”
Special events like live music or fashion shows may return in the fall once the space is fully functional.
“We definitely want to do some different events,” Ryan said. “But we need to have a space, and I don’t want to just throw something together here and not have it be the best event that it can be.”
The Horners are also considering bringing on part-time help if movies resume this summer.
“We’re taking some phone calls. If people want to call and look for a little part-time summer job,” Ryan said, “we might have something.”
Financially, the closure took a heavy toll.
“We just want to get open and start having a little bit of income again,” Ryan said. “Because it’s a huge loss, you know, not being open through our three biggest, you know, months of the year.”
Still, the newly reopened boutique offers a bright signal of hope and determination. The Comet Theater may not be fully back yet, but thanks to creativity, grit, and a community willing to lend a hand, it’s already shining again.