RollerC Posted May 18, 2007 Share Posted May 18, 2007 Anyone else think small privatly owned waterparks are beginging to be a thing of the past? With the major amusement parks having their waterparks included in the price of admission, it seems like the smaller ones can't compete. I saw it happen with Dover Lake when Geauga Lake's Wildwater Kingdom was built...i suspect Pioneer Waterland to be the next. Ozzie Waterpark announced that it will close forever: http://www.dailyherald.com/news/cookstory.asp?id=313609&cc=c&tc=&t=. So do you think we'll see any other small waterparks close in the near future? The same thing happened to Amusement parks back in the 60's-70's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YoshiFan Posted May 18, 2007 Share Posted May 18, 2007 I agree that with the parks that have water parks included in admission, it hurts seperate gate waterparks. I think small waterparks in tourist areas (like ones at the beach) can survive but in general I think more and more not in those type of areas will close. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louise Posted May 18, 2007 Share Posted May 18, 2007 I think long-term, a LOT of the smaller waterparks and amusement parks who aren't incorporated into major chains will be lost, unfortunately that seems to be the way the world is going. It's the same in retail, apart from REAL specialists, and places that have very loyal customers in out of the way places or whatever, tons of smaller one-store companies are being lost because of the corporate giants. It's sad, but it's business. Hopefully a lot of them will survive for a looong time yet though! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snuggles Posted May 18, 2007 Share Posted May 18, 2007 Hopefully Joyland can get their stupid waterpark and totally pwn wild west world. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shavethewhales Posted May 18, 2007 Share Posted May 18, 2007 Yup, the free-market can be a bitch, but at least in the end we kinda-sorta get the best product. Even around me water-parks are going out, overcome by over-crowded cesspools over an hour away... I don't get why everyone would rather go so far for a crappy park with a 'toilet bowl' rather than relax at a local, peaceful water-playground where it's calmer and cleaner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jew Posted May 18, 2007 Share Posted May 18, 2007 There's so many factors that go into a park staying open or not that I don't think it is fair to say that just the inclusion of waterparks is killing them off. It certainly doesn't help anything, but it's not THE deciding factor. It just seals the deal when there are other problems that can no longer be covered up (poor operations, rude staff, poor upkeep, etc.) since you have such tough competition. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goliath513 Posted May 18, 2007 Share Posted May 18, 2007 Last year, nothern California lost a water park called Winsor Waterworks, which was about an hour away from my home. The park only had a simple pool and 3 decent sized slides, but it also had picnic areas and volleyball courts. One thing that I liked about it was they had barbqueues for guests' use. Their troubles began in 2004 I think it was when a 10 year old boy drowned in the pool while on an end-of-the-year school trip. He didn't know how to swim and his parents let him go. This shows how irresponsible parents are these days. Well, of course, this led to legal troubles and they shut down in early 2006. This park was a traditional destination for end of the year school trips. My brother went there with his school the day following the drowning. From what I hear, they were also loosing business to the nearby (former Six Flags) Waterworlds. Another park that has been lost is no small park. This was Oakwood park in Manteca, California. From what my my dad has told me, this was one big waterpark. Sadly, after 30 years of operation, they closed their gates in September of 2004 and has been completely torn down. As I was driving through Manteca last July, I saw water slide track pieces nearby the site which was in the early phases of residential construction. I was really disappointed that I never got to visit this park because I heard it was great. If only... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angry_Gumball Posted May 18, 2007 Share Posted May 18, 2007 ^Parts of Manteca (Lard) Waterslides still stand today....at Great America's Boomerang Bay. I'm still waiting for that California Splash to open...which always gets pushed back another year once the beginning of May hits. And their last construction update was back in 2006 when some small random building went vertical...no actual slidework being done. I'm sure the park's slowly becoming a park to be scrapped. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winningfreak Posted May 18, 2007 Share Posted May 18, 2007 This is starting to sound like wal-mart... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perilous Chris Posted May 18, 2007 Share Posted May 18, 2007 This is kind of off-topic, but I live in Orange County California and I have noticed a few family fun centers dismantle their waterslides. In example, there used to be a few Rollersplash sled rides. There was one at Bullwinkles "now Boomers in Fountain Valley," and another at the family fun center next to Camelot Golfland in Anaheim. For some reason I am suprised that Camelot Golfland still has their slides. A strange case was the waterslides located at Golf N Stuff in Downey. These were used in the first Karate Kid movie and it turns out that they only ran for a couple of years. They sat there standing but not operating until 1996. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lapseofreason Posted May 18, 2007 Share Posted May 18, 2007 ^That reminds me of when you're driving up I-15 towards Vegas, there is this water park seemingly in the middle of nowhere (I think between Victorville and Barstow) that is NEVER open. I've passed it several times now in the past 5 years, and it always seems to be in a worse state than before... even though it looks like a cool place to stop and get wet. Shame... they must have been closed due to the "rude staff" thing, or it was more in the middle of nowhere than I thought. -amanda Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I love DW Posted May 18, 2007 Share Posted May 18, 2007 In my opinion: It's sad to see any type of theme park or water park go but it's really just a sign of the time (not to sound like ABC news there but it is). Larger company's know how the business works and operates very well and has the money to do so. Thus water parks that aren't included with theme parks or are not owned by chains are going because they may not have the experience, money to invest, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metrock Posted May 18, 2007 Share Posted May 18, 2007 As long as Wild Rivers in Irvine stays around, I will be happy. I know there has been talk of it closing down ... lets hope not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I love DW Posted May 18, 2007 Share Posted May 18, 2007 The best thing to do if you don't want a local or favorite small waterpark to close is to go visit it, eat there, by souvenirs, tell your friends and family how great it is and go back to it often. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Perilous Chris Posted May 18, 2007 Share Posted May 18, 2007 ^That reminds me of when you're driving up I-15 towards Vegas, there is this water park seemingly in the middle of nowhere (I think between Victorville and Barstow) that is NEVER open. I've passed it several times now in the past 5 years, and it always seems to be in a worse state than before... even though it looks like a cool place to stop and get wet. Shame... they must have been closed due to the "rude staff" thing, or it was more in the middle of nowhere than I thought. -amanda That is Rock-a-Hula. I do not know the full story, but I believe that they have been open on and off with various financial issues. It looks as though they have a good selection of slides. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goliath513 Posted May 18, 2007 Share Posted May 18, 2007 This reminds me of a small amusement park in Golden, CO called Heritage Square. This park has 2 small water slides which have not been operational since sometime around 2003. This is due to the opening of a small locally owned water park on the other end of town that same year, the nearby community/fitness center with its indoor pools and waterslide, Elitch Gardens' water park, and Hyland Hills Waterworld north of denver. The water park at Heritage square has been completely trashed during its down time. I will post a picture of it as of last August when I get home from school. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Homer Posted May 18, 2007 Share Posted May 18, 2007 I don't know what you are talking about, but some of the smaller water parks in Florida are still going strong. The closest "water park" (technically, its just a YMCA with a kiddie playground) still pulls in lots of young families to a small water playground without having to drive one or more hours to Adventure Island, etc. which have huge kiddie areas. Then, the closest real water park to me, SunSplash, still manages to pull in guests despite not having a giant funnel, etc. Its a little bit of a gyp, but then again, people still go and have fun. Even though they haven't added a water slide since 2001 [which is basically a promo for electric heating, and it has the most suitable name ever, The Electric Slide .] I think some parks will succeed if it is in a medium sized city, like SunSplash. With the rising cost of gas, I doubt people will travel far to ride slides that are similiar to their local parks' selection. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ghost007jas Posted May 18, 2007 Share Posted May 18, 2007 ^That reminds me of when you're driving up I-15 towards Vegas, there is this water park seemingly in the middle of nowhere (I think between Victorville and Barstow) that is NEVER open. I've passed it several times now in the past 5 years, and it always seems to be in a worse state than before... even though it looks like a cool place to stop and get wet. Shame... they must have been closed due to the "rude staff" thing, or it was more in the middle of nowhere than I thought. -amanda Are you thinking of Pharaoh's Lost Kingdom? That park is a dump... And in the middle of nowhere Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skramp Posted May 19, 2007 Share Posted May 19, 2007 PKi has their waterpark, but amazingly The Beach has managed to survive for years being less than half a mile from PKI, but now with the opening of the Great Wolf Lodge, we will have to see. I think people love The Beach Waterpark because it's cheap, not overcrowded and has some very decent attractions. I really don't see it going anywhere. Check it out: www.thebeachwaterpark.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
socalMAN123 Posted May 19, 2007 Share Posted May 19, 2007 As long as Wild Rivers in Irvine stays around, I will be happy. I know there has been talk of it closing down ... lets hope not. If Wild Rivers close, I will not be happy. It is probably my favorite waterpark, just behind Blizzard Beach. The overall small, private feeling of the park is realy nice. And not to mention, they have some great slides (Bombay Blasters to be specific). ---Brent Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goliath513 Posted May 19, 2007 Share Posted May 19, 2007 Not all major water parks are chain operated. Hyland Hills Waterworld in Denver, America's largest waterpark, is owned by a campground. Here is the result of 4 years of neglect at Heritage Square's waterslides. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dj snow Posted May 19, 2007 Share Posted May 19, 2007 Actually, Hyland Hills Waterworld is municipally owned. It is part of the Hyland Hills Park and Recreation District. For that reason, local residents get incredibly low-priced admission rates, especially considering the size of that park. Whether such a park should be part of the public sector is something that's been debated in a lot of areas. Regardless, though, Hyland Hills Waterworld looks like a great park. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chmilo24 Posted May 19, 2007 Share Posted May 19, 2007 Another park that has been lost is no small park. This was Oakwood park in Manteca, California. From what my my dad has told me, this was one big waterpark. Sadly, after 30 years of operation, they closed their gates in September of 2004 and has been completely torn down. As I was driving through Manteca last July, I saw water slide track pieces nearby the site which was in the early phases of residential construction. I was really disappointed that I never got to visit this park because I heard it was great. If only... Your talking about Manteca Waterslides, that was probably the best water park in Nor Cal. Their slides were made in like the 70s and had over 20 slides. But the slides got older, and the profits weren't coming in. So they had to close it due to the fact that they didn't have enough money to fix the rides. But at that park they had the Wests tallest and steepest water slide that had a maximum angle of around 70 degrees, and you used to go down it on a boogie board, it was awesome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlyingScooter Posted May 19, 2007 Share Posted May 19, 2007 Anyone else think small privatly owned waterparks are beginging to be a thing of the past? With the major amusement parks having their waterparks included in the price of admission, it seems like the smaller ones can't compete. I saw it happen with Dover Lake when Geauga Lake's Wildwater Kingdom was built...i suspect Pioneer Waterland to be the next. Ozzie Waterpark announced that it will close forever: http://www.dailyherald.com/news/cookstory.asp?id=313609&cc=c&tc=&t=. So do you think we'll see any other small waterparks close in the near future? The same thing happened to Amusement parks back in the 60's-70's. Don't forget WildWood Waterpark Columbia Station Ohio. (of all the ohio waterparks, this one was my favorite..) A friend of mine went to Pioneer last summer, and he said it was okay for a 'Trailer Trash' waterpark. As far as Dover lake is concerned, Glassman didn't think he was making enough and chose not to open. (most of their money came from Company picnics and such. The place was only open two months a year anyway.) Latest rumor on Dover: Peak Resorts, owner of Brandywine and Boston Mills bought the land and our going to convert into more skiable slopes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goliath513 Posted May 19, 2007 Share Posted May 19, 2007 Your talking about Manteca Waterslides, that was probably the best water park in Nor Cal. Their slides were made in like the 70s and had over 20 slides. But the slides got older, and the profits weren't coming in. So they had to close it due to the fact that they didn't have enough money to fix the rides. But at that park they had the Wests tallest and steepest water slide that had a maximum angle of around 70 degrees, and you used to go down it on a boogie board, it was awesome. Hey do you have any pictures of the park and or its slides? I have been looking for pictures and have been unable to find any Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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