thekidd33 Posted August 21, 2011 Share Posted August 21, 2011 http://www.wlfi.com/dpp/news/local/Former-workers-protest-Indiana-Beach An interesting read and something I would certainly like to know more about (from both sides) if anyone else finds anything or has any knowledge about this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted August 21, 2011 Share Posted August 21, 2011 The comments are, if anything, even more interesting than the article. The Spackmans ran a clean, safe, fun park. Quite charming it was. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ki lover Posted August 21, 2011 Share Posted August 21, 2011 Indiana Beach will be closed in the next five years. Mark my words. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dudecoasterman Posted August 21, 2011 Share Posted August 21, 2011 Unfortunately, Ki lover is right. The park has really lost its touch and the tickets are just getting so expensive for a park of its size. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jtkirkfan2002 Posted August 21, 2011 Share Posted August 21, 2011 I was there yesterday and saw the protests. They should have been my first clue to turn around and go home, but I had promised my kids a trip to Indiana Beach. The place was dirty, smelly, loud and understaffed. The waterpark was closed because "lightning is in the area" which didn't show up for over an hour. We were promised that the waterpark would reopen after the storm, but at 4:30, with the sun shining in a beautiful blue sky, it remained shut for the rest of the day. They must have sent the lifeguards and half of the rest of the staff home since I counted at least 5 rides that never reopened after the storm. Their "multi-million dollar renovation" consists of moving several "spin & puke" rides to a former parking lot to make room for their silly confidence course and zip line, which of course is pay-to-play and not covered under a pay-one-price or combination pass. Their combination passes for the rides and waterpark cost nearly as much as a general admission ticket to King's Island and the park is less than half the size. Unless I hear that something drastically changes, I've made my last trek to Indiana Beach, and I have a lot of fond memories of that place. Another "old guard" park is about to go the way of Indy's old Riverside and Myrtle Beach's Pavillion and be gone forever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rotag Posted August 21, 2011 Share Posted August 21, 2011 im gone for 36 hours from any information source of news & come back to find this! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KingCobra Posted August 22, 2011 Share Posted August 22, 2011 I did not go this year, but did attend twice last year, and I really did enjoy the park, but it is a half-day park, at most. The coasters are all really nice, but after that, it was a real drop off. I guess only time will tell if there is any truth behind this protest. But, regardless, if there is enough public response to it that either a) keeps people from attending or keeps potential employees from applying and current employees from returning, it could be the begining of the end. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corey31398 Posted August 24, 2011 Share Posted August 24, 2011 I have been a guest for 35 years and was there last week and have been a part of the protest as a customer; not an employee or community member and I stand behind them all as I myself have had very bad experiences the last few years since Morgan RV took over with this year being the absolute worst. I can tell you that Bob Moser; President of Morgan RV's,did contact the organizer of the protest and former Rides Manager (the one in the news that just resigned Friday); Darrell Price, today and they are going to be meeting to discuss all of the concers...All protests have been put on hold at the moment and all comments on the facebook page have been removed while Darrell speaks with Bob Moser. Here is a copy of the statement that the employees had put on the Facebook protest page they had going: A United Statement The past four years have been tough on the workers of Indiana Beach. We have faced many hardships, the biggest being that we have had to watch our Family Park turn into something else entirely. We had to sit by while our longtime loyal customers have been tossed aside. The local businesses and communities have been forgotten. It has been like watching an intruder ransack our home from the inside out. Most of us have tried to work on the inside to keep the park true to the Indiana Beach we used to love, but our voices have never been heeded, and we are done being mistreated. This last year has been the worst yet. In attempts to increase profits to pay for their “multi-million dollar expansion” they have forgone even common decency. Loyal employees are fired on a whim. Corporate’s “trusted” are allowed, even encouraged, to drink in uniform, when the rest of us would be terminated on the spot. Employees are fired or suspended for calling in sick. The owner of the park continually calls us all “liars and thieves” on conference calls that can be heard throughout the office as he shouts at and berates the only managers that stand on our side. When a guest comes up with a complaint, we are not even allowed to give refunds or compensation for their problems; we have been left as dart boards for the guest’s ire. Rides are ordered to be rotated to save “budget” and we employees are left to try to explain this to children and families on vacation. If all this wasn’t bad enough, safety and proper procedure have taken a backseat to the deadlines that corporate has set on us. Rides are continuously closed, or many times forced to be open using rigged components because the company will not or cannot pay for the parts that will allow maintenance to fix them properly. Employees have continually pointed out safety concerns that are brushed aside. The accommodations are also in disrepair because of the company’s unwillingness, or inability, to spend money. Our guests are forced to stay in rooms with collapsing ceilings, moldy walls, bug infestations, faulty appliances and broken air conditioning—guests who have been simply told to “deal with it.” During the rush to get Adventure Point open, safety standards have been disregarded outright. The new Zip lines are being run outside of Standard Operating Procedures. The Air Jumper attraction, which was being forced to open despite safety concerns, nearly crippled an employee on its opening night. The employee went without even an apology or expression of concern from management. For these reasons we stand united. We will no longer sit idle as the Indiana Beach we remember wastes away. The Indiana Beach Employees Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 Very interesting Chicago Tribune article: http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/ct-met-indiana-beach-0903-20110903,0,5683180,full.story Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndyGuy4KI Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 I am still not sure what to think. Being this was my child hood park and love that park for so many reasons, I have seen the decline in details myself since Morgan took over. When they bought it and repainted the water slides and other water park attractions, I had high hopes they would continue through the rest of the park over the next several seasons and really spruce the place up.They got a great start, but forgot to pick it back up. They may have the best safety record in the country, but when people do not see you taking care of the small things like keeping a rides loading station clean and rides looking run down, what do they do to keep you safe? In a small park like IB I don't expect a new ride all the time, but I do expect existing rides be clean and orderly, which I have not seen in the last few seasons. HW presents their rides to the best of their abilities. A scrambler is just a scrambler, but a nicely painted well presented scrambler makes it a ride guests want to ride instead of wondering if they are safe to ride it whether it is or not. How about you re-theme an existing ride or two per season? That is showing you are putting an effort into the park without having to spend a bunch of money. It takes me 1.5 hrs to get to IB, and 3 hrs to get to HW. As much as I love both parks, I am going to pick HW most of the time to patronize their clean rides and park and I prefer CB over Raven. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TOPGUN1993 Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 I went to IB for the first time on Sunday. You could def. tell the rides employees had something on there minds as they did there jobs slow on purpose. Most noticeably at Hurricane where they would check the bars in slow motion each train. The games and food employees were cheerful and friendly. Just something I'd add. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coney Islander Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 Consumer reports of Indiana Beach tend to be quite unfavorable... http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g37340-d269784-Reviews-Indiana_Beach_Camp_Resort-Monticello_Indiana.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bkroz Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 On my drive to Chicago, I considered stopping by Indiana Beach for a few unique coasters and flat rides. I had assumed that, being a smaller, more boardwalk-style park, individual tickets could be purchased (like, 4 tickets for this coaster, 5 for that coaster, with tickets being $.75 a piece or whatever). When I looked on line and saw that it was $30 for a ride pass, I decided not to visit. It's a tiny little family park. A two-day ticket to Kings Island works out to about $30 per day, so no way was I about to spend that much to ride a coaster or two on the way to Chicago. Apparently, I'm lucky I avoided it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 ...or not. The day may come, perhaps soon, that deciding to ride coasters or go to the amusement park at Indiana Beach will not be an option. You had that chance. You may or may not get it again. Terp, who got to go to many now closed parks, but missed out on too many others. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bkroz Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 If it's unclean and not well run or maintained, then I don't feel I've missed out on this particular park. Perhaps in the past it was a nice place, but if it's as the consumer reports say, then I'd rather not visit at all than remember it poorly to gain a few rides for a coaster count. But that's just me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndyGuy4KI Posted September 3, 2011 Share Posted September 3, 2011 If it's unclean and not well run or maintained, then I don't feel I've missed out on this particular park. Perhaps in the past it was a nice place, but if it's as the consumer reports say, then I'd rather not visit at all than remember it poorly to gain a few rides for a coaster count. But that's just me. I don't know you personally GYK, but you don't strike me as the type of guy who you let others make decisions for you. Your saying you would rather take the word of people you don't know than go make up your own mind for yourself? I know of several posters here (despite IB's issues that need resolved) who prefer IB over KI. I prefer CB over Raven even though if I compare the park as a whole I choose HW. You won't know till you find out for yourself! I do hope you get the chance to visit before Morgan runs it into the ground. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delirium13 Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 Park closed for the season early... From http://indianabeach.com/pages/indianabeach_calendar: Indiana Beach Amusement Resort has closed for the 2011 season. We are focusing all of our efforts on preparation for the 2012 season.Join us Saturday October 1st in the historic Ballroom for our Octoberfest Party in partnership with the 1st Annual White County Fall Festival. Our rides will not be open but you can expect German fare, oompah music, season brew, and good times! Our NASCAR RV Resorts at Indiana Beach will remain open until October 31st. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RailRider Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 Nail in the coffin??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndyGuy4KI Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 That is quite odd. I have a feeling it was not so much to do with the 2012 season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TombRaiderFTW Posted September 14, 2011 Share Posted September 14, 2011 Truthfully, I don't entirely get the love for IB. Until this summer, I could kinda see the "classic" view of the place. Then I went to Kennywood, who manages to be clearly "classic" without being a bit dumpy. Not to mention Kennywood's employees were able to send more than one train per year on their wooden coasters, which is more than IB could say when I visited last summer. And from what I collect from other people, I'm not the only person who experienced that. So really, when I hear "Indiana Beach closed early this year," I think, "Big surprise." Still, if the place were to close down, I gotta admit that I'd miss LoCoSuMo and Steel Hawg pretty badly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PREMiERdrum Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 Their Facebook was deleted shortly after the announcement today. Something stinks.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndyGuy4KI Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 A pop up on their website now promotes on sale 2012 Season passes. http://www.indianabeach.com/ Still confused about this situation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jason B Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 I visisted Indiana Beach for the first time this summer, got tickets through Groupon. We had a really good time and really enjoyed outselves. I thought it was a nice little park with a few very decent rollar coasters. I really hope they can turn all their problems around and keep this palce open. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thekidd33 Posted September 15, 2011 Author Share Posted September 15, 2011 There are some unconfirmed reports (supposedly on employees Facebook pages and TPR) that the employees were not paid today. If true, that cannot be a good sign. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jason B Posted September 15, 2011 Share Posted September 15, 2011 Indiana Beach responds to complaints about closing early http://www.wlfi.com/dpp/news/local/indiana-beach-responds-to-complaints-about-closing-early Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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