Indiana Beach (IB) Discussion Thread

[ginzo]

What's sad is people just want Indiana Beach to produce a similar product to before. That's it. There is no expectation for a world class, Europa Park-like operation with huge rides, resort hotels, etc. No, all we want is a fun place with basic flat rides and coasters and the the park to be open with most of the rides running in good condition.

[orangecats2]

Well, guess I'm glad I can't go this weekend after all! We had season passes and were going to go one more time to use them. What if I had booked a room at IB? I wonder if they would have called and canceled? It would have been bad if we had went and no rides were open!

[kidcoaster 2]

Wow this is just a poor move on IB part and a slap in the face to their patrons.... and since they took down the facebook page I bet you they will have a few unhappy guests show of saturday who didn't know they were closing.

[QueerRudie]

This is NOT a good sign- at all. Somebody has seen something bad, and it's scared them.

 

Parks don't close up early- it's just not done as a habit, as it (As we've seen) pissed off every person around and in the end, it doesn't make MONEY. When you're looking at a capital expenditure for rides, and you're not bringing in MONEY, then it's a moot point. The most perishable item in a Theme Park (and in all other industries) is TIME. When you give up a day's worth or potential revenue, you're letting that time go to waste- no income for you to work with.

 

I have to -seriously- question the Park's management decision on this- It might not be as full during the weekends as you'd like, but it's still better than to have rides, shows and attractions sitting dormant on a perfectly good revenue day. It's either that, or they are sending a signal that IB is having financial difficulties that we're not being exposed to.

 

I'd bet it's the latter, in which get your charge cards out, folks. I know I'd be looking for a great backyard coaster, cheap. (JetStar, anyone?)

[beatle11]

Regardless of how things play out over the coming weeks, months, and years, kudos to the park employees for standing up for what they believe in. How rare is that these days?

 

Yeah, I thought that was awesome. Something's gone wrong at IB for sure. I'd like to have more info but the parks decision to shut down early, and them not deciding to shut down the facebook page as to avoid the issue definitely raises huge questions.

[Popcorn54]

It's sad, but the comparison between this park and Blackpool carries on. Now this park is also being run by some corporate people that don't care and are just ruining the charm and the whole park.

 

The Only difference I would say is that Blackpool is starting to improve a bit now. With Constant additions now and more investment in the park is giving the park a better future unlike IB who is going for the worse.

 

This park looks very nice as well, It's such a shame to see it deteriorate with the new Management however it's good to see the employees worried about the park.

[gforce532]

When I was there back on Tue Aug 23rd. The park was completely dead, I mean dead as in I couldn't believe the park was even open. I don't know what it is normally like on a school day but I was getting solo rides on all the roller coasters. And the operators just stood at their rides in boredom waiting for one of the 10 guest in the park to go on their ride. But anyway it was a fun day at the park. I had a free rides and water park voucher. And since the waterpark was closed they gave me free admission on the zipline. But yeah the park felt more like a deserted/haunted amusement park than a normal operating amusement park.

[cal1br3tto]

I'm so thankful I loved the park when I visited in 2010. By that point, many people had already grown to dislike it. I think it helped that I was a first time visitor, so I wasn't able to pick up on any declines in charm or quality that clearly were evident to repeat guests. I wasn't impressed with all the employees or park policies, but I generally enjoy seedy places, and Indiana Beach delivered on that front (albeit a little too much, as it was quite dirty).

 

As for this development, that's ridiculous. The park needs to improve or die. I hope if it does stay open, it turns around, so I can be a happy guest once again. If it closes, I'm saving up for Steel Hawg.

[jamesdillaman]

I just went a few weeks ago and had a great time. It seemed to be turning around again. I was plesantly surprised, but now -this- happens and I'm questioning everything again. I don't understand why doing it with no notice at all. The whole story is definitely not being told here, but I suspect some of the employees will fill in the gaps. Since they've been so vocal before, why stop now?

[Geauga Dog]

Something does seem fishy about the abrupt closing and then the deletion of the FB page. I haven't been to IB yet but from what I can get from photos and trip reports it's got a quirky feel to the park.

 

If anyone knows a park well its the employees and it's sad that management doesn't seem to care, at least that 's what I got out of the articles. That spells doom right from the get go.

[StarTrekGeek]

Yeah... doesn't look too good.

[KickTheSky]

What a shame!

 

Any chance the folks down in Santa Claus would have enough funds to take over?

[netdvn]

After reading some of the comments made by the employees and all the drama that's been going on, it's kinda sad to see a park like this go down, especially with the sudden announcement of the park's closing.

 

Hopefully the new owners know how to turn a situation like this around. It would suck to see another park close/have problems due to bad press.

[WildStangAlex]

Employees still at the park did not get paid today (Pay Day). This can be very bad news.

[SFGAm Shock Wave]

^ Can I ask for a source? Not that its hard to believe, but just to make sure its legit. If Indiana Beach is indeed at the end of its life, there's going to be plenty of pissed off 2012 season pass holders.

[WildStangAlex]

Somebody I know that works in maintenance there, on facebook, and I quote "No check." That was at 6:30 this morning.

[SharkTums]

^Interesting.

 

Sad to see, hopefully something happens over the offseason that can save this park.

[robbalvey]

it's kinda sad to see a park like this go down, especially with the sudden announcement of the park's closing.

"Of the park's closing...FOR THE SEASON!"

 

I do want to make sure that we are being responsible and reporting things "correctly." The park has not "closed", it has "closed for the season."

 

Having lived through the whole "Six Flags Magic Mountain is closing" insanity, and STILL running into people in So Cal who think "SFMM closed two years ago", the last thing I would want TPR to do is start spreading something that gives people a wrong impression, especially if they are just casually reading via Google search.

 

The park is already going to have a tough time rebounding, let's not make it any worse.

 

--Robb

[805Andrew]

Hopefully they are reopening next season as they are already selling four-packs of 2012 season passes for $44.44 a person on their website and this offer expires October 1st. I think they are selling these hoping to get enough cash to make improvements for next season. If they don't open next season, like someone said, they going to have a lot of pissed off season pass holders. I hope they stay open as Indiana Beach looks like a quirky, fun place from the TPR pictures and videos I've seen, especially Lost Coaster of Superstition Mountain.

[WildStangAlex]

The employees were told they'd be paid tomorrow. And I'm pretty sure IB still has grant money from Indiana leftover from this year's "improvements"

[matthewrydzik]

The park has one of the most unapologetic responses ever... ""It was on our operating calendar, but things are subject to change without notice and it was just a decision we had to make,""

 

http://www.wlfi.com/dpp/news/local/indiana-beach-responds-to-complaints-about-closing-early

MONTICELLO, Ind. (WLFI) - Indiana Beach in Monticello, Indiana is now closed for the season except to private functions and the Enjoy White County Festival on October 1, 2011.

 

The news the park would not remain open through the month of September came as a shock to some. WLFI received several complaints about the park's schedule on our Facebook page .

 

Don Stack owns a house on Lake Schafer, near Indiana Beach. He said his family is coming in this weekend and he had planned to take them to the park. Stack said it was an annual tradition, a family reunion. He said his brothers were coming into town from Texas and Oklahoma, but now, with the park closed, they will have to make alternative plans.

 

"We'll still get together and do things, with or without the amusement park," Stack said.

 

NewsChannel 18 contacted Indiana Beach Thursday to find out what was going on.

 

Bob Moser, president of Morgan RV Resorts which owns the park, spoke to us by phone. He said Indiana Beach typically closes on Labor Day weekend, however, when Morgan first purchased the amusement park in 2008, the company tried an extended season, but found it not to be profitable.

 

The park does remain open in September for private functions. Sherry Vogel, Director of Sales and Marketing for Indiana Beach, said the park will be open on October 1 for the Enjoy White County Festival .

 

She acknowledged the change in closing date this season.

 

"It was on our operating calendar, but things are subject to change without notice and it was just a decision we had to make," Vogel explained.

 

Moser told NewsChannel 18 Morgan RV Resorts is "very committed" to Indiana Beach and he alluded to future plans to improve the park next season, but did not want to elaborate. He said Morgan has invested more than $10 million to the park since the company bought it in 2008.

 

Moser denied the closure this season had anything to do with a protest earlier this summer by former employees. He said he plans to visit the park in the next several days. He added he will be meeting with city officials as well as the former employees.

 

Indiana Beach's Operating Calendar is posted on the park's website .

[WildStangAlex]

They changed the calendar on their website. Moser was supposed to meet with former employees on the 12th, just hours before the abrupt closing for the season, however, he had to cancel. Currently Morgan RV is being sued by the Massachusetts Attorney General for extortion involving their Peters Pond property. Sherry Vogel, the one interviewed in the above news story was "monitoring" the protest from her Van a few weeks ago.

 

 

The Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office has filed a lawsuit against the owners of a manufactured housing community at Peters Pond.

The suit alleges that Morgan RV Resorts, LLC has been intimidating residents by demanding they pay exorbitant membership fees to remain in the community. The lawsuit seeks to stop the collection of the improper fees and to recover monies paid by consumers in violation of the Consumer Protection Act and Manufactured Housing Act.

“Manufactured home ownership is an important housing option for Massachusetts consumers,” said Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley. “All homeowners must be treated fairly and in accordance with laws designed for their protection.”

According to the lawsuit, Morgan RV Resorts LLC and its sales team aggressively solicited homeowners at Peters Pond to pay up to $16,000 as a membership fee to remain in the community. This fee would be in addition to the $6,000 annual fee homeowners pay to lease their site. The membership fees do not include any apparent benefits. The defendants, directed by Morgan’s president, Robert J. Moser, allegedly threatened homeowners that if they did not pay to join the “club,” they could be removed from their site at their own expense and without compensation.

Many homeowners had invested their life’s savings in a Cape Cod home. According to the complaint, nearly 100 homeowners have paid to join the club out of fear that they would lose their home.

The Peters Pond manufactured housing community is the seasonal home for dozens of retirees and elderly residents. As in most manufactured housing communities, residents own their homes but must rent the tract of land on which the manufactured home is situated. Once a manufactured home is situated on a tract, the home is essentially immobile. Manufactured housing communities must be annually licensed by the municipality’s board of health. The Peters Pond community owners operate without the requisite manufactured housing license.

The complaint alleges that residents were threatened by Morgan’s pressure sales tactics, which include intercepting homeowners at the community gate to listen to a sales pitch and repeatedly contacting them at their home and by phone. When homeowners asked to see the membership contract, the defendants allegedly told homeowners that they needed to pay a $1,000 deposit and could not show the contract to a lawyer. Defendants then distributed a threatening letter to homeowners from their own lawyer that asserts defendants’ right to remove the homeowners from the community. When homeowners in the community gathered at barbecues and discussed the conditions at Peters Pond, the complaint alleges that homeowners were threatened with eviction if they continued to assemble.

Tired of constant harassment from salespeople and the threat of losing their homes, homeowners tried to sell their homes. Defendants again allegedly interfered with the homeowners’ rights by restricting “For Sale” signs on their property and preventing brokers from entering the community. Prospective buyers were told that they must pay $16,000 to join the club before purchasing the home. Defendants threatened homeowners by saying Morgan could, at its discretion, reject any potential homebuyer.

Coakley’s office seeks injunctive relief to prevent defendants from soliciting further illegal fees from consumers. The lawsuit also seeks the recoveries of monies that it claims Morgan improperly collected for memberships, as well as penalties for violations of the Manufactured Housing Act and the Consumer Protection Act.

The lawsuit would also require that Morgan obtain proper licensure and cease all unfair and deceptive conduct.

Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Engel of Coakley’s Consumer Protection Division is handling the matter with the assistance of paralegal James Maloney.

 

Read more: AG sues owner of Peters Pond manufactured housing community - - Sandwich Broadsider http://www.wickedlocal.com/sandwich/archive/x911398528/AG-files-suit-against-owner-of-Peters-Pond-manufactured-housing-community#ixzz1Y36SQp4X

[RJMIB]

We have worked very hard to make IB a better experience. Since 2008 we have invested over 10 million dollars, those monies have built a new coaster, new facades on the buildings, new games, 3-4 new townhomes, all new paint, new rope course,2 new ziplines,3 new bathrooms, new attractions, 8 new cottages, updated signage, new front gate, new rockwall, new airjumps, new midways games, stopped charging so people could just enter the park(this year we did 5 for 5, five dollars and you received 5 dollars on a cool cash card, still better then a cost with no return), new concessionaires, fireworks every weekend, all this and more were added without reducing anything. Things were moved if the decision was wrong we will change it. So with all these additions what have we done wrong? The old owner stated in the paper two weeks ago the park looks better now then when we purchased. We are committed to IB, the community, customers and of course our employees.

I ask you to please be careful what is posted, lets not create a problem when there is not one. IB has the best mechanics and does voluntary safety inspections, we operate a very safe park. If a ride is down, it is because I demand to have the problem fixed as if it was new. I will not rush any upgrade. Instead of criticizing, because a ride is down have a peace of mind that we ensure all rides are safe.

 

Think about it inspectors spent a week at IB doing the most intense inspection that could be done and there was not one notable item. Why, because we ensure that every ride is safe before operated.

 

We are not perfect, so to illustrate our commitment to our community there will be some very exciting news announced over the next few weeks and months.

We are committed to IB and to win the hearts of all new and old customers, we are not going anywhere, so please work with us as we get to know eachother and keep IB the gem it has been for decades.

 

Thanks,

 

Bob Moser

[robbalvey]

^ Thanks for posting an update Bob. Much appreciated. We are all fans of the park, and we look forward to next season with any improvements you guys are working on. There are going to be some people here will be more "enthusiastic" than others, and it's great to see the park directly speaking to those people.

 

If there is anything you need us to do, please do not hesitate to ask.

 

--Robb

[RJMIB]

Thank you so much!