Herschend Family Entertainment Closes Celebration City

[TATSUFAN]

I'M VERY SAD ABOUT THE ANNOUNCEMENT!

 

I HAD ALOT OF FUN, AT THIS PARK, I'M GOING TO MISS IT ALOT

 

 

 

I'LL MISS YOU CELEBRATION CITY

[sixflagsguy5]

I'm not really surprised at all. I went there in June this year and it was dead and really boring. We got there at the end of the day and stayed for maybe three or four hours just to get the credits and ride Ozark Wildcat a lot. It's sad to see parks close down, but sometimes that's just how it is.

 

If they plan on keeping stuff up for awhile that might be a good sign. I'm wondering if they're planning on redoing the park, scrapping it completely, or just temporarily closing down while the economy's bad.

[cycamps]

What is the relationship between Silver Dollar City and Celebration City?

[Shavethewhales]

^They're both owned by Herschend Family Entertainment. CC was supposed to be SDC's sister park, operating in the night hours as something to do after SDC, but it never worked and they kind of stopped trying.

 

It was really tough just getting to the park after SDC closed. All you could hope to do was get there in time to get a few rounds on OzCat and maybe a couple of spins on the other credits.

[Vffreak07]

A Branson Dream. . .

[sixflagsguy5]

The funny thing is though that it was like $50 for SDC and $30 for CC but only like $70 or $75 for a three day hopper ticket for both parks. Branson is a really nice place to go and I would definitely go there again on the way to Texas.

[Duane]

The funny thing is though that it was like $50 for SDC and $30 for CC but only like $70 or $75 for a three day hopper ticket for both parks.

Since I only live four hours away, it was a nice little weekend getaway for me every year. It was well worth the $75 to have three days at SDC with the bonus of being able to ride Wild Cat too! I actually even said to myself once "If only Wild Cat were at SDC, I wouldn't have to go to CC". Be careful what you wish for.

[John Peck]

Since it's been a few months since the closing announcement, has there been any activity at the park or any new news floating around?

[Shavethewhales]

Just a little update: rides are starting to disappear from the CC horizon. The ferris wheel came down today. (Edit: no it didn't, see next post)

 

Nothing is publicly known yet of the fate of the property, or even the fate of the rides. Nothing has apparently been sold yet or even removed from Branson, but some rides have apparently been placed in storage, and some minor equipment has been transferred to other properties. The place is being well taken care of.

 

The disappearance of the ferris wheel doesn't actually say much about the future of the park, other than the fact that the ferris wheel won't be a part of it. Rides, including the Ozark Wildcat, may still be a large part of the new concept. I still don't think they'll throw Oz Cat away so quickly (and no, it's not going to be moved to another park, think of the type of land it sits on and the relative costs). A photo of the now ferris-wheel-less park was posted on SDCFans today: http://sdcfans.com/forums/index.php?...sg7184#msg7184

 

I hope to hear soon about when an announcement on the property will be made. They may have delayed their decisions longer than expected, leading to the dismantlement of these rides for better keeping. I'm still hoping for a SDC-style resort complex on the property, or at least a Victorian Zoo/theme park type concept.

[Shavethewhales]

Whoops, looks like the ferris wheel photo is a 'shop - just some messing around on SDCFans. The ferris wheel is still there. However, everthing else I said still stands. A lot of rides have been taken down and stored for whatever awaits them.

[jedimaster1227]

http://www.bransondailynews.com/story.php?storyID=14502

 

Fifteen months after Branson amusement park Celebration City closed, park owners are still looking for ways to utilize the 110-acre tract of land on the west side of Branson.

 

“We continue to look at options for Celebration City and we are not on the verge of any type of announcement,” said Herschend Family Entertainment spokeswoman Lisa Rau on Wednesday afternoon. “We are looking at how to create a family attraction.” She said Herschend Family Entertainment has looked at everything from an aquarium to retail and lodging. “There are still so many ideas out there,” she said. “We are still in that initial stage.”

 

Woodland Hills Family Church utilizes a portion of the property, including several buildings.

 

Three Celebration City rides have been moved to other parks. The Jack Rabbit, the Scrambler and the Flying Coaster were moved to Wild Adventures in Valdosta, Ga. “Several other elements have gone to various other parks,” Rau said.

 

Herschend Family Entertainment purchased the property, which at that time was Branson U.S.A., in November 2001. The park was revamped and in May 2003, was reopened to the public. The park closed in October 2008.

 

The actual theme park utilizes only 40 of the 110 acres the entertainment company owns.

 

This year happens to be the 50th anniversary of Silver Dollar City, another theme park owned by Herschend Family Entertainment. Rau said the focus will be on Silver Dollar City. She said the park is building a new $7 million ride and is also planning a list of special events. “The vast amount of our attention and capital resources are targeted at Silver Dollar City’s 50th birthday,” she said. Rau said Celebration City continues to have security and a dedicated groundskeeper.

 

“We are maintaining a 100-percent commitment to maintaining the appearance around the park,” she said.