Closing Down A Theme Park

[Acero]

He means that if Cedar Fair hadn't aquired the property then Six Flags would've done the same thing to Geauga as they did Astroworld - shut it down and move rides to other Six Flags props. However, I don't think that Six Flags would've done the same thing. They could've easily contacted somebody else to take Geauga, but I guess Cedar Fair was their first choice. And Cedar Fair took it, so they didn't need to contact any other possible buyers. One of the reasons Astroworld was demolished is because it seems to be a nice place to stamp urban developments all over, it is very conveniently located (I have yet to see what happens to the Astroworld property, however. The park could still be there if it hadn't been for Kieran Burke). Geauga Lake isn't exactly in a bustling city like Houston, though. Cedar Fair could've easily sold off the park to a company like PARC. So Astroworld and Geauga are two completely different situations, but with the same demise.

[coaster05]

Not to mention there have been other parks SF has been trying to sell and when they don't have a buyer they just keep operating them. Wasn't there also a rumor that Kennywood wanted to buy the park. I believe CF would have bought it just to keep it away from a company that knows exactly how to run a park that size.

[geaugalakeinexile]

Cedar Fair did not even try to sell Geauga Lake when they realized that their "plan" had failed. I have read that there would have been buyers if they tried to sell. I still believe that they closed the ride side because they did not want any competition with Cedar Point. Cedar Point has gone from 3.7 million visitors in 2005 to around 3 million this year.

I live within 45 minutes of Cedar Point, but no longer go. They are too much like the DMV.

Too much money, wait in line too long, when all you want to do is go for a ride.

[carolinacaniac]

^ Just out of curiousity, what do you mean by size? I ask because if you look at everything that Kennywood operates (Kennywood, Compounce, Idlewild, ect.....), they all are pretty much smaller in land area then Geauga Lake. Now if you are refering to the number of rides, then I might understand a bit more.

 

I agree that it is sad when these places close down. But I have to admit I was more bummed about the Pavilion than Geauga Lake, since the pavilion a different kind of character to it. I still wish it was Family Kingdom instead of the Pavilion with Swamp Fox getting relocated, but as many others have said, there isn't a lot you can do about it.

 

I also agree that amusement parks probably won't be the cure to gangs. While I would love it if there was ever a small amusement park opened here in the Greenville area, I can tell from going to the Pitt Co. Fair that their would be just as many gang members at this park as there are at the fair, or the mall, or anywhere else in town. Heck, the city has a population around 60-70 thousand, and another town in the county with a population around 2 or 3 thousand has just as bad of a gang problem. When I did one of my Middle Grade Education clinicals (kind of like a mini-internship) at the school in this smaller town, the teacher told me about a student who would cross out all of the C's on her notes, homework, worksheets, tests and quizes as a sign of "Death to the Crips". This in a little town with less than 5000 people.

[Acero]

I live within 45 minutes of Cedar Point, but no longer go. They are too much like the DMV.

Too much money, wait in line too long, when all you want to do is go for a ride.

Hhaha. That's funny.

 

Yeah but Cedar Fair is just selfish. Completely. The fate of Geauga Lake is kind of is Six Flag's fault though - you know that the only outcome of selling a park to a competitor that has a flagship park down the road can't be good.

If Kennywood operated Geauga Lake they would be the best operator Geauga Lake has ever had...(in my eyes)

[KDCOASTERFAN]

He means that if Cedar Fair hadn't aquired the property then Six Flags would've done the same thing to Geauga as they did Astroworld - shut it down and move rides to other Six Flags props. However, I don't think that Six Flags would've done the same thing. They could've easily contacted somebody else to take Geauga, but I guess Cedar Fair was their first choice. And Cedar Fair took it, so they didn't need to contact any other possible buyers. One of the reasons Astroworld was demolished is because it seems to be a nice place to stamp urban developments all over, it is very conveniently located (I have yet to see what happens to the Astroworld property, however. The park could still be there if it hadn't been for Kieran Burke). Geauga Lake isn't exactly in a bustling city like Houston, though. Cedar Fair could've easily sold off the park to a company like PARC. So Astroworld and Geauga are two completely different situations, but with the same demise.

 

If SFI couldn't find a buyer they just would've shut SFWOA down simple as that.The park was costing them too much to operate & they weren't seeing any ROI(kinda hard to see an ROI though when they never made an investment in the place after x-flight though) & that is what led to the decline in attendance throughout CF's management.

 

There's one o ther thing to consider here though:Of those guests who came through GL's gates a majority of them went straight for the waterpark....hence the lack of new additions & eventual demise of the ride park.

 

People simply weren't patronizing the ride park in the numbers desired to make an ROI on expanding,let alone operating it.Ever notice how most of the coasters were always going out with half to 2/3rds empty trains? Well that certainly won't be a problem at the parks where rides like Dominator & Thunderhawk are being r elocated to because they'll definitely have the attendance needed & patronage of those rides to send them out with full trains all the time.

[coaster05]

^I agree with your Dominator statement, but to believe that MIA always sends out full trains, or to believe that 50% of the people who go to MIA don't go for the water park is crazy. The water park at MIA is amazing and is the only real reason to go as CF continues to ignore maintanace on Timbers.

[Acero]

 

If SFI couldn't find a buyer they just would've shut SFWOA down simple as that.

 

I'm sure that other operators besides CF would've loved to get their paws on a gem like Geauga Lake. Of course, like previously stated, once the park belonged to Cedar Fair it was obvious it would never make it out of the company's clutch "alive" so to speak. So, there is no shortage of buyers for GL.

I will agree with you on the negligence of the park. Like I said, Geauga Lake was a gem in terms of property (and location) that had so much potential for future expansion and not necessarily land expansion but expansion inside the park's boundaries to make it more pleasing to the GP. It's so sad. Geauga Lake was a great park, and could've been an even better park hadn't it been for the recent operators. Six Flags and Cedar Fair are both equally at fault here, although Cedar Fair had the final decision here, the demolition of the park wasn't inevitable.

Anyways.

[palmerleeberry]

I have been to Astroworld, Geauga Lake, The Pavalion (in Myrtle Beach), Magic Harbor (also in Myrtle Beach), and to Lakeside (outside Roanoke, VA) and won't be coming back to either of these parks not by choice, but because these parks are DEFUNCT!!! It does make one , , and then when a park is no longer open, even worse if there was a favorite ride or a ride you couldn't ride anyplace else that was inside that park. I still miss the Shooting Star from Lakeside.

[TheRapidsNerd]

One of the hardest parts of life to accept, is that the times can and do change and that all things eventually pass back into time from whence the came.

 

It's hard to see rides and parks we like go, especially, in some cases, under questionable circumstances. Despite feeling sad, and as difficult as it is, we must let go and move on so we can spend our precious time enjoying what's still around, and just living.

 

Opryland will always be in my heart. It had it's time and place and I've painfully accepted that. Now I travel more and go have fun and try new things for the adventure.

 

In a wierd way, it makes you appreciate what you have.

[thrillerman1]

Aww Elissa I REALLY liked MSAP...but I'm indie rock like that.

[astroworldfan1]

It gets me made when parks that have a lot of history close down. (i.e. Geauga Lake). I feel bad for the people who grew up at these parks that are now closed.

[TopThrill182]

I truly do believe Geauga Lake could have survived had Cedar Fair wanted it to. However, I agree that Six Flags was not any better. Had a buyer not stepped forth and bought the park from Six Flags, they would have closed Worlds of Adventure. That's why I never think that the statement "Well if SF had never sold it Worlds of Adventure would still be around today" many people make is valid.

 

With rising fuel costs, people becoming more and more busy, and the fact there are so many entertainment options so close to home, I think Geauga Lake could have been a valuable resource for Cedar Fair. 700,000 is more than enough guests to support an amusement park. Michigan's Adventure has been in the CF chain for years, not to mention the countless other parks around the country that get an attendance less than 700,000. Plus, many parks in CF's chain get an attendance which is quite comparable to GL (Valleyfair, Dorney, etc). No the park didn't hit 3 million as CP did just an hour away, but that's not the type of park GL was ever meant to be.

 

I think a nice, manageable, less expensive park such as GL (being a more local park) would have proven successful. I just think CF spent money in all the wrong places. First, I think WWK was a mistake. There was nothing really wrong with the Hurricane Harbor water park. Some of the attractions could have used a bit of updating, and it was a bit landlocked, but there were many things in there that were quite nice. Instead of spending the $25 million to build an entirely new water park, I think it would have been wiser to spend maybe half of that re-doing the Hurricane Harbor one. By removing such attractions as the monorail, skyscraper, X-Flight, Steel Venom, go-carts, and perhaps even Head Spin (or to even relocate it within the park) would have freed up more than enough land to expand and remodel HH, making it a much more attractive water park but not carrying a $24 million price tag. Plus, it would have downsized the amusement park, achieving two goals.

 

This would have left the park with a lot of classic wooden coasters, and Dominator and Thunderhawk as their big coasters (I always thought this was perfectly fine). Then, the entire Sea World side would have been empty, allowing them to sell it off. This would have raised quite a bit of money which would have allowed them to do many improvements within the park, a bit of advertising, etc. This would have left them with a nice, smaller park, which as you can see around the country, are fully capable of being operated even though they don't draw a huge attendance.

[coastermaniac]

I don't care what anyone says about Six Flags making the park worse. Cedar Fair was planning on closing down the park from the moment they bought it. What did SF do, they added 5 coasters in two years. What did CF do, they got rid of the Sea World side, added a not-so-good water park, got rid of two good coasters, then eventually closed the place down. Now that to me seems like Cedar Fair did a WAY better job at managing the park than Six Flags did...not. All I'm saying is that Six Flags tried to make the park a better one. And that Cedar Fair only bought the park because it was competing with Cedar Point.

[XII]

While I enjoyed my time at Geauga Lake this year, I never felt sad when it closed. In fact, I think I was actually a little happy about it. It makes me feels good about myself that I went to a defunct park. And Dominator is being moved to PKD. So it's not like I lost anything. I can just ride it there. The only other ride I enjoyed there was the Big Dipper, but I'll probably just forget all about that ride when I ride Phoinex this year.