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This press release they handed out at IAAPA sets the opening in April.

If all of this is true, I must admit it's better than I'd hoped for the site. I mean we all hate the fact Coney closed and we hate the fact that MEMI didn't seem the most straightforward with the goals or intentions at first and don't get me started on sunlight pool. However, if they keep the old arcade buildings and food court for office space I can respect that. Also I'm very happy to hear moonlight gardens might be fitting into the new plans for the space because it's been a staple for Cincinnati for so long. I was also pleasantly surprised about them keeping the picnic pavilion area which I remember being a nice venue spot for festivals when I was a kid. Nice to see that alot of the property (minus sunlight pool) is being retooled to fit the new use of the space.

Original K.I. & Miami Valley Railroad crew member Denis Larrick joined the Tower Topics podcast and shared some fascinating stories about the attraction’s history at Kings Island. https://youtu.be/FkY48_tKNDQ?si=sb8oRu7W5OqwM2ZP

Man I really hope it’s ready by opening day since it will be my first time back in the park in 5 years. Going specifically in hopes that it is open on time.

1. God I miss those lights. 2. No they were kept off during the off season.

Losing Sunlite Pool was a major blow because it was something my parents and grandparents (great-grandparents even) got to experience. It was from a time when classic amusement parks had jumbo pools for summertime cooling. It's unlikely that something so impressive like that would be built again- and I'm aware of the push for Sunlite 2.0. With that in mind, it was a simple shape and could, theoretically, be recreated elsewhere (but again, not likely). The same can't be said about the charming buildings on the rides side, which are relics of an era where amusement parks were interested in detail and beauty. Some parks still do pay mind to those things, but it's becoming more and more rare. Here's to a positive future for Moonlite Gardens and the other Mall buildings.

They offer a premium experience for starters. Universal Orlando Resort is designed to make you stay multiple days. Six Flags parks are mostly regional with people visiting for a day, then going home. There’s less opportunity for Six Flags to monetize second and third days, on-site lodging and vacation package behavior. Universal excels at turning demand into high-margin upgrades, on top of tickets, food and merchandise. Six Flags is heavily dependent on season pass visitation in many of its markets, and that pressures per-cap spending. Universal also has those global, world-class IP as a repeatable content machine. They utilize it well. That’s my thoughts on it.

Considering I moved to Seattle, I will not be planning a visit to the park until after July 4th just to be safe haha! Not flying halfway across the country for opening day only for them to not have Phantom ready

I think the word you were looking for is switchbacks (or cattle pens). That space could use a good renovation to fit more seats in it anyways. I do fully believe that it'd be best to use that space for any extended queue. The A/C situation would still worry me — we've seen how the Festhaus gets with its doors sometimes always open — so I'd love to see some giant fans in there if it comes to be true. The Reddit source might be right on some of the points. Now that you've mentioned more about it, I could understand how the connection of all of the effects could take that long. If the park decides to do some technical rehearsal soft openings then they might want to look at how Universal and Disney have handled theirs. I personally hope they don't have any because I don't want to choose between soft opening and real opening, but let's be real I think I'd go for whatever is available. Technical rehearsals would also help to sort out any potential issues with the flashlights, animatronics, and screens.

Last season they didn’t have any shows inside the theater and used it as a meet and greet space that kept the doors opened. Depending on how many turnstiles they’d be able to fit I’d imagine it’d be easy enough to fit most of the crowds back there considering the reused ride system has consistent loading times and any returning ride operators have experience with it. For opening weekend it could potentially be an issue of deciding whether they want to create a within the Great Pumpkin Coaster entrance, or the exit to PT. I’m now questioning the source’s belief that it won’t be ready by opening day, but it also depends on how much integrity the park wants to put into a first impression. If show programming starts the first week of March and takes 2 months, April 18 is in sorta in the middle where if programming takes faster than expected it could be ready, or they could choose to open it with some effects potentially not working and making any adjustments within the weekdays before they begin daily OPs. It could maybe be a case where they do passholder previews until a few weekends into the season, but that would probably only make more people upset than if their flashlights weren’t working properly.

I'd hate to lose that indoor theater space to an extended queue, but it would also mean more air conditioned and shaded temporary queue space. Although, if it does get turned into extended queue the doors would probably stay open and ruin the effectiveness of the A/C system. Does it really take 2 months to program a dark ride of this size? I haven't seen anything from similar projects, but that feels like a long time.

I think they should at least set up a temporary overflow queue in the peanuts showplace just in case for opening weekend crowds.

It’s been a long time. Like, a loooong time. But I vaguely remember the overflow line on opening day for SDatHC being directed toward the left side of the building by the face painting booth/Sweet Spot. Does that mean anything for PT:ON? Nope.

What if we get a line on opening day similar to when Banshee first opened for PT Opening Nightmare? 😅

If I recall someone made a mockup in one of the threads, but I'm assuming for about the first month or so they'll loop it back by Pumpkin Coaster, possibly going through the Peanuts Showplace theater as well (Which I still think would be cool if they put some of the old displays they used for the lobby of Encore in there). They used a similar setup for the final week or so of Boo Blasters, but I imagine Phantom's going to have a larger turnout.

It would be a really nice thing to see a little park again, but unfortunately MEMI isn't in the ride and attractions business. But with a lot of the pre-Kings Island buildings still there, it will be as if Coney Island never closed (minus Sunlite Pool obviously). I think MEMI started calling the site Riverbend Park a while back after the sale. With both entrances still marked with the Coney name, I would love to see them retain the name for the new development. A YouTuber flew over the site a few weeks ago also. On the topic of Moonlite Gardens, the video shows some work had been done on the north wing of the building closer to Lake Como. It looks like two new electrical boxes/ panels were added, which would not make sense if they're set on demolishing the structure. As mundane as it sounds, it is a positive sign and suggests a longterm goal.

Riverbend Music Center and Farmer Music Center shared aerial photos of the construction site of the new amphitheatre on their Facebook page. The Farmer Music Center at Coney Island is currently being built on the site of Coney's west parking lot, formerly the location of Coney's old athletic field. Here are some things to note. -Lake Como was dredged and drained temporarily and the lakebed was dug out to elevate the land for the new amphitheatre. This was done to help protect the new Farmer Music Center from the flood waters of the Ohio River in the event the river rises (as it always has and will). Lake Como will be deeper than before once it is filled with water once again. -Moonlite Gardens is still standing. The Cincinnati Symphony had discussed the restoration of Coney's old dance hall, which was condemned around 2019 due to the deterioration of the flooring inside the building. While attending Summerfair 2025, I had a conversation with a Riverbend/MEMI employee about the plans for the property and she confirmed that Moonlite Gardens is here to stay. -The Picnic Grove, which is where Coney Island got its start in the summer of 1870 when James Parker rented out his apple orchard to a church picnic, still stands. The Symphony plans to keep the grove and picnic shelters in place for yearly events such as Summerfair, which will return to the Coney Island site from May 29 - 31, 2026. -The auto gate on Kellogg Avenue and the river gate and lighthouse, both built in 1924 and 1925 respectively at the beginning of the Schott/Wachs era of Coney, will remain. -Hampton Court, the skill games building built in 1966 along the shore of Lake Como with its French Normandy inspired brick architecture and clock tower, will remain, now housing the offices for MEMI. -Sunlite Pool, built in 1925 as the world's largest recirculating swimming pool, was demolished starting in March of 2024, just shy of 100 years old. The old pool site will more than likely be used for parking to make up for what was lost where the Farmer Music Center is being constructed. The full post can be viewed below: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/17guHrqVET/

And to be fair, the GP usually doesn't even know the make/model of the rides they ride nor do they often care. They just want to have fun. Those of us with this hobby/special interest care about specs, make/model, etc because it is just that. A hobby/special interest.

What Giga? We got 2 Hypers!

People always bring up Fury 325 in comparison to Orion on forums and Facebook...to me, Fury ranks lower than Orion (I've said this before) because after the tunnel it's like they tried to figure out how they could get back to the station and what they came up with did nothing for me...made it feel less complete as a whole ride. Whereas, Orion feels complete. It's as if those on forums and facebook pages (yeah I'm calling out my page) are the ones who overanalyze and become unenthused as coaster enthusiasts when it's something they personally don't like.