rhyano Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 6/6/14) If you like visiting Wildwater Kingdom, the waterpark that is the only surviving attraction from the former Geauga Lake and SeaWorld Ohio attraction site, you may want to be sure you visit this season. Id take this rumor with a HUGE grain of salt right now, but Im told that attendance is just not anywhere near where Cedar Fair would like it to be and if things dont improve Wildwater Kingdom could go the way of Geauga Lake, with the parks collection of slides being sent out to the other parks in the chain, much like they did with Geauga Lakes collection of roller coasters. Cedar Fair knows the Sandusky area down the road is ready to pick up the slack between Cedar Points Soak City, Cedar Fairs own Castaway Bay waterpark resort as well as the giant Kalahari and Great Wolf Lodge resorts along with the smaller Maui Sands and Rain Water Park resorts also in town. I hope Im wrong, as it is never good to see a park close down, so just consider this a fair warning that the issue may be under review at the corporate level. Visit and show your support for this park despite the fact that I cant remember the last time that it ever opened a new slide. -Screamscape Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bkroz Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 We'll see. But I can't imagine the park is bleeding money or anything. The last time it got a new attraction was what, 2006? A wave pool? It seems to me that it has a healthy, local season pass holder population that keeps the place inhabited. I would imagine that it's attendance is about what you'd expect for an itty-bitty water park located in the remote farmland of Northeast Ohio. Every time I'm there, half or more of the reclining chairs are full, which seems healthy given the circumstances. If even some of those people are buying snacks, it's probably doing alright. Again, not like the park is investing in huge additions or anything. I bet attendance is a big part of the question, and that another big part is if the park's rides could be of better use elsewhere. The park has one ProSlide Tornado, a water fortress play area, and a giant 7-slide complex. That's literally it in terms of relocatable attractions. If the park closed, they could move those three things and market each as new (like they did with the dry park's coasters). But it's not like Geauga Lake where it was a goldmine of attractions that could be relocated and fuel the other parks for multiple years. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thedevariouseffect Posted July 29, 2014 Share Posted July 29, 2014 Or just a goldmine..See how much they sold and decided to scrap and not relocate. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted August 8, 2014 Share Posted August 8, 2014 http://www.ohio.com/blogs/airtime/airtime-1.489637/two-parks-conneaut-lake-and-aurora-s-wildwater-kingdom-on-enthusiasts-endangered-lists-1.507449 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Outdoor Man Posted August 8, 2014 Share Posted August 8, 2014 For what its worth, Kings Island is only open daily one week longer. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted August 8, 2014 Share Posted August 8, 2014 http://geaugalaketoday.fpb.yuku.com/topic/2762/2014-Wildwater-Kingdom-Closing-Rumor Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shark6495 Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 That's actually sad to read.... Imagine if this would be happening to KI...... Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RollerNut Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 I am surprised it has lasted this long. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malem Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 If you think that thread is sad... http://geaugalaketoday.fpb.yuku.com/topic/808/Deconstruction-began-today-32008 http://geaugalaketoday.fpb.yuku.com/topic/1266/New-WKYC-Aerial-Video-of-Geauga-Lake-Demolition-Almost-Done?page=1 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stashua123 Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 This is one of those rare moments that I REALLY HATE Cedar Fair. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shark6495 Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 Wow ..... No wonder people thought the GL thing was planned from the beginning.... Why did CF raze everything to the ground? To ensure no future competition ? Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
malem Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 I certainly don't think that it was planned from the beginning. The plan was to operate it as a smaller, family park. SFWoA/GL was much bigger than its attendance justified, and Cedar Fair didn't want Herschend or Busch attempting to bring Cedar Point's attendance to Aurora. Buying it and right-sizing it became the plan. The writing was on the wall once Cedar Fair acquired Paramount Parks with billions of dollars of high-interest loans. GL's attendance was in free fall, and "new" rides were sorely needed at the acquired, well-attended parks. GL's flow of red ink could no longer be ignored. Closing the park let Cedar Fair cut its losses and distribute investments to parks where they would have a much bigger return. They also hoped to pay down debt by quickly selling GL's assets and land, but that didn't pan out so well. I was a somewhat-active member on that site when the decision was announced. It wasn't fun coming home to read daily updates on the park's destruction. After the decision was announced, I never got around to visiting a park operated under a Kinzel. It doesn't seem that I ever will. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thedevariouseffect Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 I can almost say it was done on purpose..I still believe that to be true..Many people I know who worked @ GL who transferred to CP, especially some maint. personnel have plenty of stories. Plus..the shoe fits..especially when you add Kinzel to the picture. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shark6495 Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 Did Kinzel not like GL what was the history between CP and GL Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thedevariouseffect Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 Moreover.. Park was too big too fast under the SIX platform. SIX sold it to get out of debt with it quick. CF took up the easy quick offer because Kinzel believed himself to sit on a huge stack of cash. Then to make more money in momma park, close down a close park that drew most of Cleveland visitors to, and they would flock to CP. I mean think, back then I remember one of the last years having a 25 dollar ride & slide park ticket. You got some great big rides and thrilling attractions, some neat shows, then a fantastic waterpark. Wheras go to CP up the road a bit and pay 40 for just rides, then hey you wan't that water park for an upcharge too right. So gut the park, keep the waterpark that sold well and had a big draw. Put the rides we like and could use in other properties that could use a new ride for just the price of deconstruction, paint, and transportation. Gut the park for stuff we can use elsewhere like Double Loop trains, etc. Then sell and scrap the rest to make a pretty penny. Then to this day they milk the park for cash being just a waterpark, when just about every guest knows the poor history, and I can't tell you how many times people stand by the beach or ontop of the Proslide Tornado and look over to what's missing across the lake. Attendance is for sure dropping I'd imagine, not one new development since the dry side was razed..New for 2014 was..nothing..new colorful beach chairs..oh and dining plans. Geauga Dog is sad.. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thegajone Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 One thing I've always wondered... how is "Geauga" pronounced? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 GEE-ah-guh 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thegajone Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 Interesting, of all the different ways I tried to say it in my head I don't think that was one of them at any point. Thanks. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bkroz Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 "GOO-gah Lake." If people look at you like an alien, it's a sign of endearment. "Goo-GAH" is an alternate pronunciation but it's common only among infants. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LovinMeSomeBanshee Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 I figured it would have a French pronunciation. Go-guh Lake. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 Tag line at the end: 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LovinMeSomeBanshee Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 It's not the first time we've butchered another language. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bkroz Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 A different Cedar Fair. I bet it would still happen today though... It would probably just look, sound, and smell a lot different. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thedevariouseffect Posted August 10, 2014 Share Posted August 10, 2014 Another sad video 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Son of King Demon Bat Posted August 10, 2014 Share Posted August 10, 2014 I think Cedar Fair should really revisit the idea of Geauga.Lake. It was a series of bad corperate decisions Busch,Six Flags and Cedar Fair that put this park into decline. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bkroz Posted August 10, 2014 Share Posted August 10, 2014 I think that the area can support a small, local-based, family park. Something that could eventually grow to be Kennywood-sized or so. Problem is that those parks rely heavily on history and nostalgia. You can't just "create" a park like that. They can't just appear. The other problem is that no one is as well-equipped to create that as Cedar Fair is, and they 1) seem unlikely to do so 2) would get a lot of push-back from the community. Locals who grew up at Geauga Lake have no reason to follow Cedar Fair's growth and change. To them, Cedar Fair will always be the corporation that closed their paradise - their Kings Island - after the season ended so no one could get last rides or say goodbye. If Cedar Fair put the park up for sale and Parques Reunidos bought it, maybe it would have a chance to grow in the way that it could. Herschend might also be able to do something with it. Cedar Fair definitely has the capability, but those two caveats are heavy ones. About half of the former SeaWorld is still vacant and undeveloped, as is the former Happy Harbor area. Like I said earlier, I don't know why they closed Happy Harbor to begin with. What was so damaging about having a giant three-story climbing net structure, three or four little family flat rides (Yo-Yo Swings, swinging ship, etc), a 4D movie theatre, a discovery garden, and a motion simulator? That alone would help the park qualify as a "family amusement park" rather than just a water park. Instead, they bulldozed that too! Scrapped it! Like, huh? Really? You can't just leave the motion simulator, garden, swinging ship, and climbing nets? Cost more to tear down than they would've cost to operate! It seems like their mindset was just to eradicate anything that was not water park. Anything! Because there's literally no other explanation for Happy Harbor being dismantled. If they were able to have kept that, and then maybe expand onto the rest of the currently-unoccupied-former-SeaWorld with a family wooden coaster, a couple thrilling flat rides, and maybe a flume ride, they'd have the start of a decent family park. Michigan's Adventure-sized in its wildest dreams, but a start. What's so disgustingly tragic is all of that infrastructure on the Wild Rides side, gone. If you'd never been, there's just no way to describe that this was, very simply, a really, really nice theme park with really wonderful little themed areas that had grown over the years and become very well-done. Coyote Creek, 50's Midway, Gotham City, Looney Tunes Boomtown, Hurricane Harbor... I mean, really an exemplary park, and even an exemplary Six Flags in terms of the era. To see that all leveled is heartbreaking, even today. So much waste. Yes the park over-expanded. Yes it was ill-prepared for the Pandora's Box that Six Flags opened. Yes it was too big, too fast. Yes it was probably doomed after those two years where 5 coasters were added. But that doesn't make it any less awful that it was leveled. So yeah, if Cedar Fair announced that they had plans to develop the remaining SeaWorld area into a family amusement park, I would be shocked and glad. But I wouldn't be "happy." Does that make sense? It would be artificial. To see so much lovely theming and history literally bulldozed... It's just horrific. Truly. Whether you were a fan of the park or not, regardless of who you blame, regardless of how things might be done differently today, it's truly horrific. Wow. God. Physically makes my stomach turn. I didn't expect to still have that reaction. The maps are oriented the same way. The building marked "78" in Happy Harbor at Six Flags Worlds of Adventure matches up to the upper-left-most building on the WildWater Kingdom map. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Interpreter Posted August 10, 2014 Share Posted August 10, 2014 Watch what they did, not what they said. Even now: Watch what they do, not what they say. Does history repeat itself? Sometimes. Yes, Henry Ford famously said history is bunk. His company, though, no longer makes only black cars. Yet, Mercury is gone, so is Edsel, and Lincoln Motor Car Company is deathly ill. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shark6495 Posted August 10, 2014 Share Posted August 10, 2014 So did CF move the water park to that one little area in the former Animal Adventure area Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thedevariouseffect Posted August 10, 2014 Share Posted August 10, 2014 Yeah they picked up all the slides and moved them. After they just left the empty wave pool there collecting algae 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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