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SMALL PARKS & ATTRACTIONS
---- THE LATEST SMALL PARK NEWS ----
(6/3/2023) Missouri's Lake of the Ozarks Resort Gets Final Approval To Begin Construction (MORE...)
(5/30/2023) Joyland Owner Passes Away (MORE...)
(5/30/2023) Lakeside Amusement Park May Finally Open Their Pinfari Zyklon Coaster (MORE...)
(5/15/2023) Dixie Landin' To Remain Closed Once Agaihn For 2023 Season (MORE...)
(5/10/2023) Santa's Village To Retire Rudy's Rapid Transit This Fall (MORE...)
(5/6/2023) Funtown/Splashtown USA - Staffing Issues Will Affect Park Schedule (MORE...)
ADVENTURE CITY (Buena Park, CA)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... and nothing added for the 2016 - 2022 seasons.
ADVENTURE PARK (Maryland)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... and nothing added for the 2016 - 2022 seasons.
ADVENTURE POINTE (Near Houston, TX)
???? - New Park - Under Construction - (9/25/22) The last time I heard anything about the proposed Adventure Pointe theme park under construction just outside Houston was 2019. At the time, the owner of the park had filed a $10 million lawsuit against the contractor and others building the park for them for failing to complete the project. Since mid 2019, the owners of Adventure Point have not posted any updated to their social media pages. Considering they were suffering from financial loss in mid-2019 over failing to finish the park, only for the world to be hit by the pandemic in early 2020, chances are that Adventure Pointe is likely dead in the water.
That said, would you believe that a decent portion of the small 24-acre park was actually built? Aerial footage (see below) of the site shot in 2020 show that the park’s train loop was completed, complete with a run through an building that had some very pirate looking skull rockwork on the side. Scattered through the property you can see some completed pathways, along with other areas where the pathways were framed up and just waiting to be poured. In addition it looks like about 5 or 6 flat rides were partially and in some cases fully assembled, along with the complete buildout of the park’s main entrance structure.
But is the project really dead? Strangely enough, Google Map’s StreetView images shot in March 2021 and June of 2022 show that some other themed building structures have been added to the property since the aerial footage was shot in 2020. There is also the matter of the changing colors of the park’s Spider flat ride. In a StreetView image from Jan 2019 you can see the Spider’s cars are Green, in the aerial footage in the video shot in 2020 the Spider’s cars have been painted Blue, and then in the StreetView image from June 2022 the Spider’s cars now appear to be Red and Black.
So is there life still in Adventure Point after all? Anyone in the area happen to know more?
(9/29/19) It has been awhile since we heard anything about the Adventure Pointe theme park project in Texas. The last we heard about the 35-acre park seemed to indicate that construction had started. While construction did begin, it came to a halt, with some rides even semi-setup on the property and some half-built buildings now standing. The owner of the park, Harvey Slusky, has now filed a lawsuit against his former attorney and the teams of architects and builders who he claimed ‘defrauded him’ and ‘lied to him’, taking his $10 million for their own profits rather than building the park.
(12/13/18) After years of waiting, it looks like construction has finally begun on the Adventure Point theme park project just outside Houston, Texas. According to their Facebook page crews were installing the power to the site back in August and just last week they posted pictures of what looks like the park's main entrance structure and gates being installed. It also looks like a few small rides may have been installed over the summer as well, so maybe we'll see it open in some form in 2019. Anyone know more?
(4/4/17) After not hearing much about this project for the past couple years, BlooLoop reports that at long last Advetnure Pointe has been granted the needed permits to finally start construction on the new theme park. The first permits granted are for the park’s Main Street building and for a Pirate Ship building. Other attractions planned include a mini railroad, go-karts, outdoor ice skating, a pirate ride, boardwalk and an outdoor 1,200 seat performance venue.
(10/14/16) After not hearing much for the past two years the latest updates about Adventure Pointe posted to their official Facebook page now show off a few images of land clearing now taking place on the site near the Tanger Outlet Mall.
(10/24/14) Good news for our Texas readers who are longing for one of the new proposed theme parks to begin construction. An official sign promoting that the Adventure Pointe park is “Coming Soon” is now on site. I’m borrowing the photo from their Facebook page, so I hope they don’t mind. On the page they also announce that their list of rides coming to the park is also complete and they hope to kick off a series of announcements about the new rides and park itself very soon.
(3/10/14) The official website for the proposed new Adventure Pointe theme park in Texas has been updated and has announced the Adventure Pointe Roundhouse in their blog. The Roundhouse is described as a event center dedicated to showcasing how the Slusky family’s historical train collection will be maintained and refurbished. The structure will host banquets, weddings, dancers and more. They also have confirmed that Adventure Pointe will also feature 4,200 SqFt Ice Skating Rink that will be open to the public year round.
(12/18/13) More details about the proposed Adventure Pointe theme park coming to the Houston area can be found in a new BlooLoop article about the park. Don’t forget to keep up with things at the park’s official Facebook page as well.
(12/9/13) A second park project is in the works for the Houston, Texas area called Adventure Pointe. The 25-acre project comes from the family of the man who created Playland Park decades ago and will be located next to the Tanger Outlet Mall on I-45 South. Groundbreaking is slated to happen in Spring 2014 in order for the park to open in 2015.
(3/18/13) While the Houston, Texas area still lacks a large theme park, the greater area around Houston seems to be flourishing with new ideas for smaller park projects. Back in December we first heard the early rumors of a possible 25-acre mini-park planned to be near the Tanger Outlet Mall near Texas City that would have a tie to the old Playland Park.
Today a little more information has come out as the city “has confirmed an area physician’s interest in building the park on 25 acres near the Tanger outlet mall, but no plans have been submitted.” However, a new Facebook page for “Playland Park” has gone live and does outline the details a little more, calling it “Playland Park – Texas City”. They have named the new park project in honor of Houston’s first real amusement park, Playland Park, and hope to open it by Summer 2015.
The park will have a retro-Americana theme to it, and will feature locomotive rides on the refurbished trains that formerly served at the Houston Zoo, but will now make runs around this new 25 acre attraction. The park will also have a Grand Carousel, an Eyerly Monster, Antique Car ride, Tea Cups and a Tilt-a-Whirl to celebrate the classic rides of the past. They will also offer new style attractions such as a “unique roller coaster zip line, an Xtra-ice 'ice' skating rink, and fast though eco-friendly Indy-type electric go-karts.” There will also be green spaces, a large picnic area, an outdoor amphitheater for concerts and an indoor pavilion to be rented out for corporate events or private functions.
Good luck to them, I hope this one happens… but it wouldn’t be Playland Park without also offering a wooden coaster as well. Lets hope they include this in the final plans too.
ADVENTURELAND (Long Island, NY)
2023 - Nothing is known at this time...
ARNOLD’S PARK (Iowa)
Park News - (12/5/2022) According to the local news Arnold’s Park is hard at work building a new dormitory building to house up to 115 park workers over the busy season. The park usually brings in a number of international students on work visas from several different counties to help fill out their staffing needs.
2023 - Legend Refurbishment - Planning - (6/5/21) So what’s next for the park? The park’s CEO mentioned they are planning a $1.5 million renovation of the park’s Legend wooden coaster (1930).
BAY BEACH (Green Bay, WI)
 2023 - NebulaZ - (4/15/2023) According to the local news Bay Beach Amusement Park is removing two rides from the lineup this season. They say that the Sea Dragon, a staple at the park for the past decade will be removed due to costly necessary repairs, and that the Chairplane also has to be removed due to a crack in the structure. There is a chance that the Chairplane could be repaired and returned to the park in the future however.
Now for the good news, as the Chairplane will be replaced by a Nebula , which I believe is a Zamperla Nebulaz. The park’s bumper car attraction has also added a new fleet of new cars.
(8/20/22) According to the local news Bay Beach Amusement Park has announced that the next ride the park would like to purchase is a Zamperla NebulaZ ride. According to the article this would be a lightly used and fully refurbished ride from an unknown location built in 2019 that would be purchased directly from Zamperla for $775.000. If the deal is approved, the park hopes to have the new ride installed in Spring 2023.
BEECH BEND PARK (Bowling Green, Kentucky)
Park News - (10/20/22) Beech Bend is a small park that Kentucky that we don’t hear a lot about, but that may change in the near future. According to Screamscape sources the small park may be quietly shopping itself around the potential buyers. Any future deal however may have more to do with the overall property and not the small amusement and waterpark, as Beech Bend is said to sit on a nearly 400 acre piece of property that includes an RV park, as well as a Drag Strip and small Race Track that are home to many events throughout the year.
More as we find out…
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... and nothing added for the 2017 - 2022 seasons.
CALAWAY PARK (Alberta, Canada)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... Nothing added in 2022
CAMDEN PARK (WV)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... and nothing added for the 2017 - 2022 seasons.
CASINO PIER (Seaside Heights, NJ)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... Nothing added in 2022
CASTLE PARK (California)
2023 - Revised Entrance and Saw Mill Plunge - (4/21/2023) Castle Park has announced Saw Mill Plunge, bringing flume ride fun back to the park with a new themed ride experience, enhanced with a new “state of the art operating system” and “five new four-person log boats” from WhiteWater. Guests will ride the classic flume ride through a
“retro sawmill experience” before ending with a towering plunge. Look for the new version of Saw Mill Plunge to open on June 10th.
Castle Park will also have a new Main Gate area this summer, a new Castle Park sign, new ticket booths, a repainted entrance area and more.
CEDAR VALLEY’S WILD FRONTIER (Michigan)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... Nothing added in 2022
CLIFF’S AMUSEMENT PARK (Albuquerque, New Mexico)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... Nothing added in 2022
COLUMBUS ZOO (Ohio)
2023 - Adventure Sky Wheel - (4/30/2023) Look for the Adventure Sky Wheel to open at the Columbus Zoo on May 27th. This will be a temporary attraction being added to the park that will run through to the last day of “Boo at the Zoo” in the fall. The wheel stands 110 feet tall, has 24 passenger gondolas and will offer rides for an upcharge of $5 for non-members, $4 for zoo-members and Columbus Zoo Gold members will get to ride for free, as well as those who purchase a “ZooMore” ride wristband for the day.
DELGROSSO’S AMUSEMENT PARK (Pennsylvania)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... and nothing added for the 2017 - 2022 seasons.
DENO’S WONDER WHEEL (New York)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... Nothing added in 2022
DIGGERLAND USA (New Jersey)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time...
DIXIE LANDIN’ & BLUE BAYOU (Baton Rouge, LA)
Park News - (5/15/2023) According to the official website, Dixie Landin’ will remain closed yet again for the Summer 2023 season. The site claims that they “look forward to seeing you in the Summer of 2024.”
For those wondering, Dixie Landin’ has sat closed since 2020, but the Blue Bayou waterpark side has continued to operate, other than an initial closure in 2020 during the early days of the pandemic. At one point a number of the amusement park rides were also listed as being for sale on the used ride market, but I don’t know if any of them were ever sold or removed.
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... and nothing added for the 2017 - 2022 seasons.
DUTCH WONDERLAND (Pennsylvania)
Owned by Palace Entertainment / Parques Reunidos
Park News - (9/29/22) According to the local news Dutch Wonderland will kick off the park’s “Happy Hauntings” Halloween festivities two weeks earlier than usual this year, starting on Oct 30th. The park will also add a new dive show to the event, featuring the royal rivers in AquaStadium for the first time for a special Halloween themed dive show.
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... Nothing added in 2022
EDAVILLE USA (Carver, MA)
Park News - (8/22/22) The Edaville Railroad Family Theme Park announced that they will reopen from Nov. 10th to January 1st to offer classic Christmas lights, rides, food and more.
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... and nothing added for the 2016 - 2022 seasons.
ENCHANTED FOREST (Oregon)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... Nothing added in 2022
EVERMORE (Utah)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time...
FAMILY KINGDOM (Myrtle Beach, SC)
Park News - (3/1/2023) An news update posted by Amusement Today about the upcoming season at Family Kingdom mentions that the Swamp Fox wooden coaster is currently being retracked, and shoulder offer a much improved ride experience this season. In an interview with the new owners, they also mention that in addition to updating some of the rides they “will be bringing in new ones for this year.”
They go on to say about a dozen new rides will be added temporarily for the season, including a Sky Hawk (ARM), F5 (KGM), Rockin’ Tug (Zamperla), a Magic Maze Glass House, Air Maxx (SBF), Miami (SBF) and Fiesta Wheel (Zamperla), the later of which will replace an aging kiddie ferris wheel. The park’s larger ferris wheel will also be outfitted with a new LED lighting package.
(10/2/22) For anyone wondering, the Myrtle Beach area took a lot of damage from Hurricane Ian, which resulted in the small Family Kingdom amusement park being flooded by the storm surge. You can see that the entire park is essentially a foot or two under water in the video clip posted below that appears to have been shot from a nearby hotel tower. The park’s online schedule now shows that Family Kingdom is closed entirely until further notice.
A second video showing off the flooding and damage caused to various sections of Myrtle Beach can also be seen below and includes a look at Family Kingdom at the start as seen from the other end of the park.
(9/24/22) According to the local news Family Kingdom Amusement Park in Myrtle Beach has been sold. The small park was said to be purchased by Bill Prescott, the owner of the Myrtle Beach Sling Shot ride, and some investors. In addition to the MB Sling Shot, Prescott is said to own a few other attractions in the Myrtle Beach area, and is listed as the “agent” for the management group that runs the rides at Broadway at the Beach.
What isn’t mentioned at all is if the purchase of the Family Kingdom Amusement Park came with the currently closed Splashes Waterpark, which sits on breach-front property across the street from Family Kingdom. Splashes closed sometime in 2020 and remained closed for all of 2021, with only a notice on the website saying that it was “Closed for the Season”. In early 2022 when the Family Kingdom website was updated, any and all mention of the Splashes waterpark was removed entirely.
My speculation at the time was that the family that owned Family Kingdom may have been looking to sell the small waterpark, as the beach-front site would have fetched an amazing price from any number of potential developers. The pandemic was not early on any theme park, and was especially hard on many of the smaller family owned parks across the nation, so it would only make sense that the owners might have looked into selling the waterpark to keep the main park financially afloat at the time. So now with Family Kingdom itself sold, the fate of the waterpark site is still an unknown.
(1/20/22) Has Family Kingdom decided to retire their Splashes Waterpark along the beachfront? For the 2021 season it was noted that Splashes did not open at all and was simply listed as “Closed for the Season”. With all the stories about staff shortages due to the ongoing COVID pandemic, it wasn’t surprising to see Family Kingdom focus on their main property.
However if you visit the updated Family Kingdom website right now, it actually no longer mentions the Splashes waterpark at all, as if it doesn’t exist. Considering the waterpark was actually located across the street from the amusement park, right along the beach, I noted last year how the property would likely fetch a pretty penny from any number of developers if Family Kingdom opted to close the waterpark and sell the property.
While we don’t know exactly what has happened, it does seem possible that the waterpark just might have seen its last days. Anyone know more about what’s going on?
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... and nothing added for the 2015 - 2022 seasons.
FUNPLEX MOUNT LAUREL (New Jersey)
2023 - New Hotel - (10/27/21) According to a press release a new dual-brand hotel is now underway at The Funplex in Mount Laurel, NJ. It will be a La Quinta and Hawthorn Suites dual-brand hotel with 125 rooms that should be ready to open by Spring 2023. The addition of a hotel allows for The Funplex to become more of a small resort experience, and I’m told that The Funplex has also secured a new liquor license for the complex, so they can offer adult beverages at the park as well as the hotel when it opens.
FUNPLEX MYRTLE BEACH (South Carolina)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... Nothing added in 2022
FUNTOWN USA / SPLASHTOWN USA (Saco, Maine)
Park News - (5/6/2023) While Funtown/Splashtown USA is putting the final details on their brand new Haunted Hotel dark ride for the 2023, a local news report also mentions that the park is having a bit of a tough time finding employees again this year. Unfortunately the park has already made the tough call to change their previously announced schedule for the 2023 season, which will now see the park closed on Mondays for the entire summer season.
2023 - Haunted Hotel - (1/2/2023) Sally Dark Rides has posted a great preview article about the new Haunted Hotel dark ride they are building at Funtown Splashtown for 2023. This will be a creation designed exclusively for Funtown Splashtown, letting guests visit the very dark and haunted Whispering Pines Hotel. This will be a classic dark ride experience, designed with black-light style decor. It seems the hotel was built on the site of a former home inhabited by a witch who has cast a magic spell upon the hotel. Now it’s up to you to try and eradicate her evil magic curse from the site, save three patrons trapped inside, and make it safe once again. Fail and you might find yourself trapped in the otherworldly Dimension X for all eternity.
(11/18/22) According to this tweet, Funtown / Splashtown will be adding the ‘Haunted Hotel” Dark Ride for the 2023 season, a fun new dark ride from Sally.
(8/6/22) Something new is coming to Funtown/Splashtown in 2023 it seems. A post to their Facebook page mentions a new banner added to The Fun Factory Arcade building that says “Something WICKED FUN is coming HERE in 2023”. The only other hint you might take from this is that the colors and font styles used on the banner do suggest something haunted or creepy themed is on the way.
Some kind of haunted house or dark ride would definitely be a fun new addition.
GALAXYLAND (Inside the West Edmonton Mall Edmonton, Alberta, Canada)
Park News - (2/1/2023) After 37 years, Galaxyland has confirmed that the Mindbender roller coaster is now closed for good, and will soon be removed. According to one Screamscape source, management apparently claimed that the Mindbender was in need of extensive and costly repairs and upgrades to the trains and the track. However, the news coverage I’ve seen thus far only mentions that Mindbender is being ‘removed’ and says nothing about being demolished or scrapped.
Given the number of classic Schwarzkopf coasters that are still running around the world today, and the fact that despite what Galaxyland says, keep in mind that Mindbender was an INDOOR coaster, never exposed to the harsh elements that outdoor rides endure. So with a careful removal, some TLC to the track and a new set of trains, perhaps we will see Mindbender run again someday… somewhere…
(1/2/2023) I’ve got a quick update on the status of Mindbender at Galaxyland. I was not aware of this myself, but Mindbender has been closed for some time now, and I’ve heard two stories so far. The first claimed that Mindbender closed back in 2020 at the start of the pandemic lock-down and never re-opened while an update added to RCDB’s page for Mindbender simply says that the coaster stopped running in July of 2021. Either way, Mindbender has been closed for quite some time.
Over the past couple years Galalxyland has been focused on their “Hasbro” rebranding project, but nothing has been mentioned about their intentions for the Mindbender, and there is no set date to reopen the ride. Given that it is an older coaster, obtaining parts needed for refurbishment could also be an issue.
If anyone know more about the possible future (or lack of one) for Mindbender, we would love to hear it.
(12/29/2022) One of our readers was checking into the status of the Mindbender at the West Edmonton Mall lately and was informed that the classic Schwarzkopf coaster is currently closed. Even more unsettling is that they did not have a scheduled or estimated reopening timeline for the Mindbender either.
If you visit the official maintenance schedule page for the park, they currently show a large number of attractions currently closed. In addition to Mindbender, Dragon Wagon, Fun House, Autosled, Trouble, Haunted Castle and Havoc are also listed as being down, though only Trouble and Havoc are officially listed as just being down due to “Routine Maintenance”.
December 2022/2023 - Galaxyland Powered by Hasbro & Phase 2 Opening Throughout 2023 - (12/10/2022) I had previously thought this project was completed during COVID, apparently the transformation of Galaxyland in the West Edmonton Mall into “Galaxyland Powered by Hasbro” is only now going to be complete when it reopens on December 17, 2022. A grand reopening event, featuring a parade of Hasbro themed characters, will take place on that date to mark the rebranding and renovation of the Galaxyland amusement park.
Note that apparently this is just Phase 1 of the project however, as the article mentions that a “second phase” of the project isn’t slated to be completed until sometime in 2023, so the renovation work and changes will continue throughout the next year.
Essentially this project has seen a number of park attractions and decor updated to be themed by the various Hasbro toy and game IPs, along with the addition of a few minor attractions. The project was announced way back in late 2019, before the arrival of COVID-19 upon the world, and I believe a few of the improvements and attractions have been slowly and quietly added to the Galaxyland park in bits and pieces over the past few years up to this point.
GALVESTON ISLAND HISTORIC PLEASURE PIER (Galveston, Texas)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... and nothing added for the 2013 - 2022 seasons.
GILLIAN'S WONDERLAND PIER (Ocean City, NJ)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... Nothing added in 2022
GILROY GARDENS (Gilroy, California)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... and nothing added for the 2015 - 2022 seasons.
GLENWOOD CAVERNS (Colorado)
Park News - (4/24/22) At last, following the death of a young rider last year, Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park has addressed their future plans for the Haunted Mine Drop attraction. According to a local news report the park says the attraction will be redesigned to include new seatbelts, change the “enclosure”, and reconfigure how guests enter the attraction itself.
I’m wondering if these changes will mean a possible complete renovation of the ride’s restraint system (which already included a seatbelt) to something possibly more like a traditional drop tower ride system. While the changes have been announced by the park, no timeline as to when the revised attraction could reopen have been announced yet, so it isn't’ known if it will reopen this season or not.
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... though the Defiance coaster opened a bit late in the 2022 season, so they may not add anything major for this year.
Haunted Mine Drop Accident News -
(2/5/22) The latest update regarding last year’s death of a young rider at Glenwood Caverns on the Haunted Mine Drop ride is one that has angered the family. According to CourtTV the local District Attorney has reported that no criminal charges will be filed regarding the accidental death. According to the statement from the local D.A., his office “cannot prove beyond a reasonable doubt any one person or entity acted with criminal negligence or was criminally reckless beyond a reasonable doubt.”
In the state’s official accident report however, it was determined that the girl’s death was a result of inadequate training and “multiple operator errors, specifically failure to ensure proper utilization of the passenger restraint system (seat belts), and a lack of understanding and resolution of the Human Machine Interface screen error conditions on the control panel.”
(10/23/21) According to the local news the state of Colorado has now fined Glennwood Caverns $68,000 for violations in relation to the accident on the Haunted Mine Drop attraction. The majority of the fine comes from a violation claiming that the park failed to properly train all the ride operators on the standards and procedures for the attraction, including “not providing adequate training on the Human Machine Interface (HMI) screen and indicator lights.”
The state will not permit the Haunted Mine Ride to reopen until Glenwood Caverns can show that they have proper training procedures in place that covers all safety requirements and operational procedures for the attraction.
(10/21/21) I’m sure this comes as no surprise to anyone, but the family of the young girl who died on the Haunted Mine Ride at Glenwood Caverns has officially filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the park. The lawsuit will be one to watch however, as in the past the park has been able to avoid judgments against it due to a mandatory waiver guests apparently sign upon entry to the park.
(9/25/21) According to the sad details released from the completed accident report regarding the death of a child on the Haunted Mine Drop ride, this entire accident was preventable and unfortunately, appear to be entirely due to operator error.
According to the report, the girl fell out of her seat during the ride, because she was sitting on top of the seat belt. Apparently the seat she was in was unoccupied during the previous ride cycle, and the belt was left buckled. This would have normally been prevented if the ride ops had checked her belt before dispatching the ride, but unfortunately they did not check the restraints. Both ride operators were new hires, both having been hired within two months of the incident.
Complicating matters more, apparently the ride knew something wasn't ride anyway, and threw an alarm code to the operators about a problem, but the new ride ops didn't know what it meant, or what to do, and simply "reset the system and launched the ride".
(9/11/21) While Glenwood Caverns is supposed to open today for the first time since the fatal incident on their Haunted Mine Drop ride, very little new information has been released about what exactly happened. To my knowledge, the only new information to come out since then was information that included the name of the 6-year-old girl who passed away (Wongel Estifanos) and the initial pre-autopsy findings that only list the cause of death as “multiple blunt force injuries” without any indication of what actually took place.
(9/8/21) In an update from Glenwood Caverns, due to the ongoing investigation, the park will remain closed through Friday and won’t reopen to guests until Saturday, Sept. 11, 2021.
(9/7/21) A few more details have been released regarding the incident at Glenwood Caverns Park. According to further news reports, it was confirmed that the person who passed away was a 6-year-old girl. This has led some to speculate that perhaps she was not tall enough for the attraction, but as the Haunted Mine Drop has only a 46” height limit, there is a good chance that the height limit was not the problem.
For those interested in the ride system itself, it was a custom built system for the park from Stan Checketts, that does feature a unique sealt-belt only style restraint system. Keep in mind this is not a car-style seat-belt that can be released by the riders at any moment, it is hard locked into the ride vehicle. Based on pictures of the ride system, I’m assuming that it was based on his Soaring Eagle company’s Daring Drop ride system. You can find a similar, but outdoor, version of this drop ride system in use in two places at the Mountain Monster attraction in Pigeon Forge. In the case there was some kind of failure of the ride system or restraint, it is fairly common for other rides that use the same hardware to be notified and requested to be shut-down while the investigation takes place, such as when the Jersey Devil coaster at Six Flags was shut down after there was an incident with the Stunt Pilot sibling ride at Silverwood. To this end, I discreetly put in a call to the Mountain Monster ride in Pigeon Forge and was told that their rides, including the drop tower, were all open for business.
While we still don’t know the exact nature of the incident, it does point us in the possible directions that it could have been purely medical in nature, or that perhaps an object (from the ride, from the theming, or a rock from the cavern itself) may have also struck the girl during the ride cycle, causing injury.
A new update from CNN has also posted a statement from the coroner’s office that, “Immediately following the incident, Glenwood Caverns employees initiated first aid until paramedics with the Glenwood Springs Fire Department arrived and determined the child had died”. Given that Haunted Drop Tower does 120 feet down into a deep cavern, having immediate access to the child to perform first aid would have been difficult if the restraint system had failed, so I can only surmise by this that the ride system did return her to the load/unload platform at the end of the ride cycle.
HOWEVER... a new update just sent in has first responder dispatcher audio claiming that “a party fell out of the shaft ride” and that “The party’s at the bottom of the shaft”, which seems to paint a different picture from what we’ve been hearing so far. They also report that a witness told them that the girl was not in her seat when the ride returned to the platform.
Regardless, our sympathies go out to everyone involved in this horrible tragedy.
(9/6/21) According to a post on the Glenwood Caverns Facebook page the attraction will be closed today and all of Tuesday as well to conduct an investigation after a “fatality” took place on Sunday night involving the park’s Haunted Mine Drop ride. No details have been released yet, but for those who aren’t familiar with the attraction, Haunted Mine Drop is a custom built drop-tower style attraction where the riders actually board the ride vehicle seats at the top of the structure (ground level) and then it drops down a mine-shaft 120 feet deep into the ground, and then brings you back up again to the surface.
IDLEWILD (Pennsylvania)
Parques Reunidos
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... and nothing added for the 2017 - 2022 seasons.
JOLLY ROGER (Ocean City, MD)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... Nothing added in 2022
JOYLAND AMUSEMENT PARK (Lubbock, TX)
Park News - (5/30/2023) While Joyland is now closed for good, there was one more chapter left to write in the park’s story this week. Screamscape was informed that the former amusement park’s owner, David Dean, passed away early on Monday after losing a long battle with cancer.
(3/5/2023) Joyland is closed for good, and now begins the process of taking down the rides and attractions, some of which may find new homes at various other theme parks across the nation. While no locations have been announced, it has been confirmed that deals are already in place for select attractions.
In fact, IRM has already been listed as the place to go if you are interested in making a purchase., and they’ve already marked off a number of Joyland rides as having already been sold. The list of sold rides includes: Mini Himalaya, Allan Herschel Helicopters & Sky Fighter, the Extreme X-Factor, Chance Space Shuttle, Chance Trabant, Eyerly Spider, the Reverchon Log Flume, Big Trucks, Tilt-a-Whirl, Blizzard Roller Coaster, the Dragon Wagon… oh… and an Eyerly Rock-O-Plane.
Funny enough, we just had a post about how Knoebels seemed to be preparing to add a rare Eyerly Rock-O-Plane to their lineup in the not too distant future. Looks like the timing was right and this may be the new home for the classic attraction.
The bigger rides still up for sale include the ARM Super Shot Drop tower, Bertazzon Bumper Cars, an Eyerly Roll-O-Plane, Carousel, Musik Express, an SDC Galaxi coaster, Technical Park Super Miami and a sale pending on the park’s Scrambler.
(1/11/2023) Sad news for Joyland fans today, as the park’s owners report that the group of investors who had planned to purchase the park have now backed out, and that Joyland will not be reopening or saved. “Liquidation of the park will follow”.
(10/20/22) Amusement Today has confirmed that Joyland Park in Lubbock will be saved. According to their announcement the longtime owners of Joyland have confirmed that they are selling the property to two local business couples. According to Joyland’s David Dean, “We are so excited that the Evans and Holland families will continue to make Joyland a family-friendly amusement park for years to come”.
According to the article the Dean family will stay active with the park through the 2023 operating season to ensure a smooth transition to the new owners, Jim and Kai Evans and Darryl and Stephanie Holland. The new owners are said to have experience in preserving and promoting legacy businesses in Lubbock and were excited to be able to save Joyland who has a rich history going back to when it first opened in 1948 as Mackenzie Park Playground.
(10/14/22) It seems there could be hope yet for the future of Joyland Amusement Park in Lubbock, Texas. While the long-time owners of the park announced that this last season was the last for the park, they also said that barring some kind of offer to purchase the property, it would be going up for auction on Oct. 27th. However the other day the planned auction was suddenly canceled.
According to a local news article, the auction house has confirmed that a private offer had been made to purchase Joyland, which was accepted by the owners. No details have been released yet about who has made the purchase, or what will become of Joyland going forward. More details as we find out.
(9/16/22) While Joyland in Lubbock, Texas has closed for the 2022 season, the park’s owners have sadly announced that unless they can find a buyer to take over the park by the end of the month, Joyland will be going up for auction about a month or so afterwards. Joyland as you know it, is now officially retired after the completion of 50 seasons.
This isn’t a sudden choice for the owners, as they’ve quietly had the park up for sale to prospective buyers for the past two years, but just haven’t been able to reach a deal with anyone yet. The past couple years have been very challenging for Joyland, which has suffered through not only the pandemic, but flooding, vandalism and labor-shortage issues.
KEANSBURG AMUSEMENT PARK (Keansburg, NJ)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... and nothing added for the 2015 - 2022 seasons.
KEMAH BOARDWALK (near Houston, Texas)
Landry’s Restaurants (SAT MAP)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... and nothing added for the 2015 - 2022 seasons.
LAKE WINNEPESAUKAH (Chattanooga, TN)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... and nothing added for the 2019 - 2022 seasons.
LAKE OF THE OZARKS / OASIS AT LAKEPORT (Missouri)
???? - Amusement Park / Indoor Waterpark Resort - (6/3/2023) The proposed Lake of the Ozarks / Oasis at Lakeport resort project in Missouri received some great news this week. St. Louis-based SkyView Partners and Tegethoff Development, along with Fred Ross, owner of Big Thunder Marine, announced the formal approval of the development plan for the Oasis at Lakeport family resort and entertainment district at Missouri’s Lake of the Ozarks. The approval was granted at the June 1, 2023, City of Osage Beach Board of Aldermen meeting.
“With the development plan approved by the City of Osage Beach, we are extremely pleased to begin construction of Oasis at Lakeport, which will offer year-round attractions and entertainment for everyone at the lake to enjoy,” said Todd Schneider, co-managing partner of SkyView Partners. “SkyView Partners and Tegethoff Development are committed to keeping the Osage Beach community informed of our progress over the next year as Oasis grows to be the premiere tourist destination of the Midwest.”
As proposed, the Oasis at Lakeport project will be a $350 million year-round family resort and entertainment district in Osage Beach, Mo., to be developed along the 25-acre Lakeport property at Highway 54 and Jeffries Road. The project will feature a Marriott branded hotel, a 26,000 sqft conference center, an indoor waterpark, restaurants, 200 public boat slips, a 1,000 space parking structure, and several amusement rides and attractions, including roller coasters and a 200-foot tall observation wheel.
An official website is now online for the project at OasisatLakeport.com which has also added an updated piece of concept art for the project. As before, the amusement park section is being kept at the section of the property closest to the freeway, increasing visibility and reducing any potential noise issues, while the resort and indoor waterpark have been moved further away from the amusement park, on the other side of the cove, which should provide nice views of the park and rides. It is worth mentioning that the wheel is now the tallest attraction in the park, and the other tall attractions in the previous concept art (Slingshot, Star Flyer) have been removed.
If “SkyView Partners” sound familiar, they do operate a small number of well-known stand-alone attraction developments, such as the SkyView Atlanta Observattion Wheel that overlooks Centennial Olympic Park as well as the Carousel, Bay Plunge Tower and SkyStar Observation Wheel in San Francisco’s Pier 39 and Golden Gate Park.
(10/30/22) Plans for a new $300 million family resort and entertainment district to be built at Lake of the Ozarks were submitted this past week. The project is being called Oasis at Lakeport and would be located at “at Highway 54 and Jeffries Road adjacent to the Grand Glaize Bridge”.
They hope to start construction sometime in 2023, and are hoping to open in 2024 on the 20 acre project which will feature a number of amusement rides and attractions mixed in with hotels, restaurants, an amphitheater, a marina, boardwalk and more. The details do mention that it will feature “roller coasters, thrill and family rides and a 200-foot-tall observation wheel”.
While I would be heavily skeptical of the timeline proposed until they actually start construction, the idea behind it does remind me quite a bit of The Island in Pigeon Forge project. In the case of The Island however, that resulted in the construction of that project in the middle of an already proven and tourist-heavy attraction corridon in Pigeon Forge. Without any personal knowledge of the Lake of the Ozarks location, I can’t say how well this one might work out. Just from initial research into the area, it does seem a popular location for many to visit, so this could turn out quite well if they can get it off the ground. For now, we’ll just have to wait and see.
LAKESIDE AMUSEMENT PARK (Denver, CO)
2023 - Zyklon Coaster - (5/30/2023) According to reports sent my way, Lakeside Amusement Park in Denver appears to be ready to open their SBNO Pinfari Zylon steel coaster at some point this summer. I’m told that new pavement has been poured and the trains are now on the track. We don’t know the official name for the coaster, but it was bought off the used ride market and set up at the park during the 2018 season, but to my knowledge, it never managed to get it open, and the pandemic only complicated things even more. So after sitting idle for the past several years, it looks like 2023 will finally be the year that Lakeside gets a new ride.
MIAMI WILDS (Miami, Florida)
???? - NEW PARK - (10/23/20) After all this time, I’m surprised by this outcome, but it seems Miami-Dade has approved the plans for the Miami Wilds project next to Zoo Miami. The plans include a waterpark, a small hotel and shopping district, along with room for some future expansion plans such as a second hotel down the line.
(10/15/20) According to the local news next week the Miami-Dade County Commission will cast votes on the proposed Miami Wilds water park project. There is quite a bit of opposition to the project now ranging from policial to nature conservationists who claim the site is home to one of the most endangered bat species in the state and this project could cause an extinction. If the project does not get passed for approval, this could likely be the end of the proposal.
(9/12/20) Would you believe that the shelved plans for the “Miami Wilds” project are have resurfaced once again? According to the local news the plans for the theme park project next to Zoo Miami are being pitched once again by a ‘hedge fund manager and team of developers” that would add 200 hotel rooms, 25,000 sqft of retail space, a water park and additional parking lot space to share with Zoo Miami.
We haven’t heard much about Miami Wilds since it was proposed back in 2013. At the time it was also backed with themeing from 20th Century Fox and would have had a lot of themeing based around the the studios various properties, including a proposed water park themed entirely to the animated Ice Age film series.
MODELLAND (Santa Monica, CA)
2022 - NOW OPEN - (10/7/22) Just before the start of the pandemic you may recall that super model Tyra Banks had set a plan in motion to open her own interactive attraction concept in California to be called ModelLand. ModelLand was actually set to open to guests in 2020 before COVID shook the planet, and put any plans to open the new attraction on hold.
Over the past couple years the concept was revised and refined and according to the reports ModelLand actually did open to guests last month in Santa Monica. Dress up, learn to strike the best poses, walk the runway and enjoyt ModelLand’s eight themed rooms, as well as a taste of Tyra Bank’s own SMiZA ice cream brand frozen delight.
So has anyone had the opportunity to give ModelLand a try for themselves? I’m curious to hear more about this unique attraction experience. Otherwise, you can check out the official website for details on how to book your own visit.
(1/10/21) Current Status Unknown, has not opened due to COVID-19 Restrictions in California. Check at Official Website for official updates.
(2/28/20) The latest updated on Tyra Banks ModelLand attraction concept now say that it will be ready to open on May 1st and will be located in Santa Monica. You can sign up for more information from the official website which is now preselling tickets starting at $59 for adults and up to $1,495 for a “Fantascene Dream” package. This mega-package includes a photoshoot, a person consultation with fashion and beauty experts, plus a styling and wardrobe change.
(2/17/20) Apparently Tyra Banks was dead serious when she said she wanted to open her own themed attraction to be called ModelLand and they’ve got an official Instagram posting all about it. The idea is that it will be a themed experience where every member of the family can experience what it is like to be a model and include some special shopping and dining experiences as well. According to the posts it will be a “story-driven attraction” showcasing a “fantasy version of the modeling world”, but it is not a theme park, or a museum.
The plan is to open ModelLand in California sometime later this year.
OAK’S PARK (Portland, Orgeon)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time...
PACIFIC PARK (Santa Monica Pier, CA)
2023 - New Sea Dragon - (3/13/2023) Pacific Park at the Santa Monica pier has retired the park’s Sea Dragon ride after 26 years of service. Fear not Sea Dragon fans… Pacific Park is replacing the old ride with a brand new version of the Sea Dragon ride. The $1.5 million replacement will swing just like the old version, but they’re adding some fun wind machines, seat rumblers and a mist system to the experience so you’ll feel like you are riding the Dragon out over the ocean. The new Sea Dragon will also feature an awesome new LED light system.
So what will become of the old Sea Dragon? It isn’t going to the scrap yard… Screamscape has been told that it will live on in a brand new home and it was sent off in style! The local news has footage of the old Sea Dragon car being lifted into the sky by a Blackhawk helicopter and flown down the coast to Port Hueneme where it will then be shipped to St. Louis. And no… it isn’t going to Six Flags there, it will actually be installed on the roof of the City Museum in St. Louis as a future new attraction.
PALACE PLAYLAND (Maine)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... and nothing added for the 2019 - 2022 seasons.
PHARAOH’S ADVENTURE PARK (California)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... and nothing added for the 2015 - 2022 seasons.
PLAYLAND at the PNE (Vancouver, Canada)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time...
2024 - Zamperla Lightning LSM Coaster - (3/10/2023) Playland at the PNE has started an online contest to name their new launched roller coaster coming to the park in 2024. You’ve only got about 2 or 3 days left to submit your entry so go now!
(1/19/2023) A Facebook post from PNE/Playland came our earlier today, showijng off a piece of yellow roller coaster track from their new 2024 coaster project. The message also says that the park will be saying goodbye to Revelation and Drop Zone this week.
(1/11/2023) Zamperla posted an interesting reel on IG in late December that features camera footage flying around their office space, the manufacturing plant and more. While it isn’t a huge reveal, about 20 seconds in you may spot the camera flying up on a large piece of yellow roller coaster track on the left side of the screen. This looks very much like Intamin style launch track and is more than likely a section of replacement launch track being retrofitted for the newly announced Lightning Coaster coming to Playland at the PNE in Canada.
As previously reported, this is the former Senzafiato coaster (an Intamin creation) that is getting refurbished and a brand new LSM launch system and trains before it gets installed in Canada. Concept art of the PNE coaster project shows that the formerly red coaster track will be repainted yellow.
According to rumors, Zamperla will be behind the update of the former Top Thrill Dragster coaster coming to Cedar Point in 2024 as well.
(11/18/22) Attractions magazine has posted a series of images from the IAAPA showfloor from when Zamperla revealed their new Lightning Train car for the first time. I believe this is the prototype for the new train design that will be used on the Lightning LSM coaster going to Playland at the PNE in 2024. According to Zamperla, the train’s restraint system was designed for rider comfort and with the ability to accommodate guests across a wide range of body sizes.
(11/15/22) Screamscape reached out to Zamperla to find out any more details about the possible link between the new PNE coaster project from Zamperla and the former Senzafiato roller coaster from Italy. The following statement was sent to Screamscape from Zamperla.
“The track was Senzafiato’s before receiving a full refurbishment, the track and columns were initially designed for infinite life. Zamperla engineered and manufactured a new LSM launch system, the cutting-edge Lightning train and new control and electrical systems. All of these improvements will make for an even more thrilling ride, improved uptime and an all-around better ownership experience for Playland at the PNE.”
(11/7/22) Sometimes it’s funny how one rumor leads right into another one, but while mentioning in another story about Zamperla’s rumored involvement in the upgrading of the Dragster coaster at Cedar Point, it also came up that Zamperla was rumored to have bought the closed Senzafiato coaster from a closed park in Italy. Like Dragster, Senzafiato was an Intamin Accelerator launch model ride, and according to the rumor Zamperla was going to update it to use a new LSM launch system, add all new trains, and install it in a new location.
A reader pointed it out a few hours ago and I’ll be damned if I don’t agree that the layout of Senzafiato looks identical to the new coaster announced for Playland at the PNE in 2024, and it is also exactly 59 feet tall. The main difference is Senzafiato is listed as being 1312 feet long, while the PNE coaster is just slightly shorter at 1245 ft, but with a change in the launch system, along with some potential changes to fit the available footprint at PNE, that could explain some adjustments to the track length if they are the same ride. You can see a POV of Senzafiato below for a comparison.
(11/6/22) A teaser animation from Zamperla shows off what their new LSM Launch coaster project for Playland at the PNE may look like in 2024 when it opens.
(11/5/22) Zamperla has announced that a new Lightning LSM Coaster will be installed at Playland at PNE in Vancouver in 2024. They will be revealing the Lightning train for this new coaster project at IAAPA Expo Orlando later this month.
The new coaster will actually be a family launched coaster, reaching a top speed of 72 km/h (45mph) for the run over 1,245 feet of track and hit a maximum height of 59 feet. Look for it to rise over the next 18 months on the site of the park’s former Corkscrew roller coaster.
???? - Future Expansion Plans - (6/27/21) A little bad news for the future re-development of Vancouver’s Playland amusement park. According to the latest reports the planned overhaul and upgrade of the park that was expected to take place over the next decade may be scaled back quite a bit from the previously announced plans. A new report was released saying that the “significant capital investment” required to complete the plans for Playland is now “exceeding the available funding sources.”
In other words… the project as previously envisioned, is going to cost a lot more than the budget they were planning to spend. They also believe that the multi-phase project would now take longer to complete than they had originally anticipated. As such, the current redevelopment of Playland is now paused in order to revamp and present a new plan in 2022 that would be scaled back.
While the plans for Playland are now on hold, plans to build a new $70 million covered outdoor amphitheater nearby were approved this week, with construction to begin in 2024 and the venue to open no later than 2026. Follow the link to see several pieces of concept art and layout plans for the paused Playland expansion project.
PLAYLAND’S CASTAWAY COVE (Ocean City, NJ)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... Nothing added in 2022
2025 - New Roller Coaster - (4/29/2023) Playland’s Castaway Cove has just received approval to build a new roller coaster. The park had been busy building a new entrance / arcade building and then had to stop on the work when it was revealed that the two-story building was going to have a third-floor addition that would serve as an operator booth for a new roller coaster. While buildings in the area would normally need a height variance to go taller than two-stories, the control room for the ride would be considered part of the ride, and exempt from the variance requirement. Construction was stopped for about two months while some clarification from the local government was needed to make a ruling on this unique case before they could move forward once again.
While the building itself is planned to be finished and open sometime this summer season, they say that the new roller coaster itself won't be coming to the park until 2025. So far, no word on exactly what kind of ride they are planning just yet, but previously released concept art featured a design with a mine-car themed coaster that would travel in and out of an enclosed mountain structure above the arcade.
SANTA’S VILLAGE AMUSEMENT & WATERPARK (Dundee, Illinois)
2023 - New New Attractions - (11/25/22) In a Facebook post promoting new season passes for 2023, Santa’s Village Amusement & Water Park has confirmed the addition of four new attractictions: Farmers Fling Coaster, Peppermint Twist Water Slide, Pirates Revenge Swinging Ship and Bumper Cars.
While this should be accurate, the park has also had a history of announcing plans to renovate and open two other used rides in the past few years that have failed to materialize at all. Those plans involved building a new dark ride based on the hardware of the former Escape from Dinosaur Beach dark ride they purchased, and then there was the Yuletide Plunge flume ride plans, that were based on the purchase of the former Log Jammer from Kiddieland. (See below for those mystery ride entries that are still listed as “Status Unknown”)
???? - New Dark Ride - Planned / Failed To Open / Status Unknown - (11/19/21) In a fun news story, the former Escape from Dinosaur Beach dark ride from the New Jersey Boardwalk has been sitting in storage since 1998. IRM Rides has announced that the ride has now been sold to Santa’s Village Azoosment & Water Park in East Dundee, IL who is planning to open a new version of the ride in time for the 2022 season.
According to the report Santa’s Village will “provide a new theme for the attraction”, so I’m not sure what, if any aspects of the old attraction’s theming may be repurposed, other than the ride system. Either way, it is exciting to see yet another dark ride announced for the 2022 season, especially one coming to an unexpected location like this, so we wish them well and can’t wait to hear more about it!
???? - Yuletide Plunge - Planned / Status Unknown - (12/1/19) Santa’s Village (Dundee, IL) has announced plans to open Yuletide Plunge, a log flume ride, in time for their 2022 season. The ride hardware was purchased from IRM Rides and is actually the former Log Jammer ride that existed from 1992 to 2009 at the Kiddieland park in Melrose Park, IL. The OD Hopkins flume ride is 1,100 feet long, stands 40 feet tall with a 35 foot drop and able to handle 600 riders per hour. (Click here to see a couple of pictures of the ride just before it was closed down forever.)
SANTA’S VILLAGE (Jefferson, HN)
Park News - (5/10/2023) According to the local news the Rudy’s Rapid Transit Roller Coaster at Santa’s Village (New Hampshire) will be retired this fall. Rudy’s Rapid Transit was built by Zamperla and opened at the park in 1988, but before that it ran at New England Playworld as the Firefly from 1981 to 1987.
(8/31/22) The local news has released a few more details about the employee injured at Santa’s Village. According to the report the 51-year-old employee was operating the park’s Poogee Penguins Spin Out Coaster (SBF / Visa Group) when he was somehow struck by the train that knocked him off the platform, falling about 6-8 feet to the ground.
According to a statement by the Fire Marshal, “There was something that happened that made that operator step out on that platform in a unique way that wouldn’t normally be the case.” Otherwise the ride was running normally and as it should, and was actually loaded with passengers at the time of the incident.
The nature of the operator’s injuries were not disclosed, they would only say that he was still in the hospital and considered to be in serious condition.
(8/28/22) The local news reports that a 51-year-old employee at Santa’s Village in New Hampshire was injured over the weekend when he apparently fell from a platform at one of the park’s roller coasters. While the article does not name the ride, the park only has two small family size roller coasters, a Zierer Tivoli and an SBF/Visa Group spinning coaster, and neither is what I would consider extremely high off the ground.
The article does say that the ride was in motion at the time and that he was taken to the hospital with ‘serious injuries’, so I’m hoping he didn’t fall onto the tracks or get struck by the train.
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... Nothing added in 2022
SEABREEZE (New York)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... Nothing added in 2022
SELVA MAGICA (Guadalajara, Mexico)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... and nothing added for the 2015 - 2022 seasons.
STEEL PIER (New Jersey)
2024 - Crazy Mouse - (11/18/22) - UPDATE - The Crazy Mouse looks like it will open in 2024 and the SkyRocket was pushed back a year to 2025.
It has been announced that Steel Pier in Atlantic City will be adding two roller coasters from Premier Rides in 2024. The big one will be a Sky Rocket II launched coaster. The second is actually the new small spinning mouse coaster that was originally revealed in artwork in June of 2022 as coming in 2023, but it now looks like has been delayed.
(6/18/22) A new posting from IRM Rides on Facebook shows off a poster for Steel Pier promoting a “New Spinning Coaster” coming for the 2023 season. In addition to a curious “Premier Rides” logo in the lower right corner (who I don’t believe have made a spinning coaster before), it mentions an upcoming contest to name the coaster.
The previous rumors about Steel Pier retiring their Crazy Mouse coaster were not only true, but they didn't even wait to open it again for the 2022 season. RCDB now lists the Crazy Mouse as being closed for good. One odd thing is throwing me off a little, as the concept art in the posted for the new coaster looks exactly like the now closed Crazy Mouse, just that the old Crazy Mouse logo has been replaced with a new one that says Steel Pier.
(1/27/22) I”m not sure how accurate this is, but I’m told that Steel Pier may be planning on retiring their Crazy Mouse (Reverchon Spinning Mouse) at the end of the 2022 season. If this proves true, look for some kind of new Mouse style coaster to replace it for the 2023 season. In the meantime get your last rides in on the Crazy Mouse while you can, just in case.
2025 - Sky Rocket II Roller Coaster - From the sound of things, the Premier Rides SkyRocket II roller coaster previously thought to be coming to Steel Pier in 2024 appears to have been pushed back to 2025 when the Spinning Coaster intended for 2023 was pushed back to 2024.
STORY LAND (Glen, NH)
Parques Reunidos
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... and nothing added for the 2015 - 2022 seasons.
STORYBOOK LAND (New Jersey)
2023 - Cinder Roller Coaster - (8/24/22) A reader who visited Storybook Land in New Jersey noticed work under construction at the park to make way for some kind of new coaster near the front of the park. They think it may be for some kind of new spinning coaster, but if it spins, this is likely a family spinner that will be low to the ground.
In fact RCDB lists this as the Cinder Roller Coaster, which will be an SBF Visa Group Spinning Coaster / MX609 3 Loops model. It should look similar to the Happy Loops at Energylandia.
TRIMPER’S RIDES (Ocean City, Maryland)
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time...
WESTERN PLAYLAND (Sunland Park, New Mexico)
Park News - (10/30/22) The local news reports that the small Western Playland Amusement Park in the El Paso area has been sold to Traders Village Marketplace. The new owners are known for running three popular flea market sites in Dallas, San Antonio and Houston, each of which also offers a collection of rides for guests to enjoy during their visit.
The Dallas location actually just opened the Prairie Screamer roller coaster in 2022, a 90ft tall E&F Miler steel rollercoaster, which was bought from Southern California where it was formerly known as the Scandia Screamer, located in an amusement section that goes under the name Prairie Playland.
So as the new owners point out, Western Playland has 60 acres and 26 rides on site already, Western Playland should merge quite well into the Village Marketplace brand of locations. “Traders Village plans to expand and install more rides, food and drive choices, concerts and other seasonal events” at Western Playland going forward, with the park set to reopen in late February 2023 for the new season.
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time...
WILD WAVES Theme & Water Park (Seattle-Tacoma, WA)
(Formerly known as Enchanted Village and Wild Waves)
Owned by EPR Properties
Managed by Premier Parks, LLC
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... Nothing added in 2022
WONDERLAND PARK (Amarillo, TX)
Park News - (3/29/23) Wonderland Amusement Park in Texas announced this week that they had to push back the season opening by one extra week to get things ready. Look for Wonderland to open for the 2023 season on April 8th and 9th.
2023 - Nothing is known at this point in time... Nothing added in 2022
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