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I don't think theme is really an issue anymore... After Time Traveler, it's kind of all moot now. They do still dress the rides up nicely, but the theme of the park that we used to fuss over is kind of treading water. They do keep some of it up, but at this point there are rides everywhere you look, obvious electronics that aren't even hidden behind paneling, and of course the "cleaned-up" aesthetic that we've discussed. I don't think a vekoma jr suspended themed to a bug would be out of place at all anymore. As far as coasters go, it would be a great addition to round out the collection more.

I mean, they can always move the sign around. Or just keep it in place and move the entrance area out into what is currently the tram stop. I've been expecting them to do away with some of the handicap parking by the entrance and make that whole area into the new shuttle/tram "depot". The entrance turnstiles would then go about where the cul-de-sac thing is that the trams don't even line up with currently. Not sure what would be done with the current admin building in that scenario though. You still need a building to sell day-of tickets and customer service stuff. I guess they could knock it down and build a new, bigger, better one. Unfortunately that actually would be a bit of a nostalgia hit.

I don't think there are any signs of them doing anything with the entrance anytime soon though. If they really needed more capacity, they would have re-done it already. We've speculated about it for years, and one of these days they will eventually get around to it, but I don't think it's anywhere near the top of the list at the moment.

The boards are still messed up, so I can't merge topics right now, but I will try to get it fixed later this week and then merge this topic with the one Swoosh started.

It's necessary, but that will sure dig more into the wooded feel on that side of the park. Guess that was already kinda moot when they added Outlaw Run though. Back in the old days you used to really leave the park behind when you rode the train. I am old enough to just barely remember the days before Powderkeg and even Buzzsaw Falls when the park ended after FITH.

I still expect that at some point there will be a road or some kind of transport connection right to the resort so that resort guests don't have to leave the property, but perhaps that will come in later phases when the resort is expanded.

If this really is a coaster project, then I'm expecting something more along the lines of Big Bear, but maybe a bit smaller since Powderkeg is right there. Hopefully it doesn't end up being a replacement for Powderkeg... PK is 20 years old now, and has always been a bit of a maintenance headache. It's still a solid ride though and is very popular.

^The investments in the park have been ramping up for the past couple of decades or so. As I recall, the ownership thing was handled a while back. It sounded complicated to me when it was explained, so I won't try to paraphrase, but essentially it's all been sorted somehow. There are probably some agreements still in place, but everything has changed over time. I'm sure their ticket sales are probably well beyond $23 million at this point.

^^There has definitely been a generational culture change regarding the aesthetics. Back in the 90's people would have screeched at the "clean" vintage aesthetic they have going now. Today if people saw the trees growing through buildings, the crooked roofs, the hillbilly decor, etc. - they'd say the place was "ghetto". Just give it another decade or two, and it'll swing around...

I wonder if the resort opportunity upended, or at least delayed, some of their plans for the FITH area. Seems like they are focused on the resort itself and the area around PK/AP right now. The old FITH building is pretty decrepit - I don't see them investing in it's re-use. Probably cheaper to tear it down and build new than trying to save it.

Still think the new train station makes the most sense, but at this point they might just tear down FM for it...

In any case, I'll bet the old FITH building comes down within the next couple of years. They will want to use some of the space for pathway connections to help expand the capacity of the park and improve general navigation issues.

I can't make heads or tails of what is going on over there. What is going on with the AP tunnel? Are they rebuilding a portion, or extending it? Really wish the scenes or something cool would come to the tunnel, but I'm curious how long AP even has left, so may not be much ROI in it.

The clearing beyond PK must have something to do with the resort. Curious if there is going to be some kind of tram/train/whatever to the resort from that area with a second entrance. I always assumed there would be a second entrance, I just thought it would be in the current maintenance area closer to FITH.

lol, the Plaza is just a space for food and festival stuff since there aren't really any good open spaces to do any crowded activities in the park. I was hoping they would do concrete pavers or stamped concrete in the area instead of asphalt, but whatever - probably got value engineered out in favor of spending money on things that actually matter. It will look a lot better once they add the decorations, such as the umbrellas that are going to hang across the entire thing.

I'm all for noticing/criticizing architectural details, since we are park nerds, but we also have to be realistic with expectations. 

Anyone else notice the vaguely "victorian" lamps? At one point, SDC was looking to advancing the year forward from 1888 into the 1890's/early 1900's so that they could add a bit of electric lighting and fancier architecture while still maintaining a historic theme. They even started installing Victorian lamps in a few places in the park, and one of the first Christmas festivals had that theme. As of a few years ago, there were still a couple left in the park. It's hard to come up with good lighting that truly fits the 1880's theme. They did have a few electric lights back then, but not in rural MO. In the past they had a lot more of the flickering lights that looked more like lanterns, but it's hard to have those everywhere. Since the park operates so much later for so much of the year now you can't really get away from having some real light sources everywhere.

If I recall, it's a pretty screwy arrangement with multiple parties involved. The lack of investment over the past decade shows that it isn't working out too well these days. It's not that the demand isn't there, it's just that HFEC isn't seeing the ROI somehow based on the current arrangement. If HFEC owned WW outright, it would be twice the size it is now with new additions every few years at least. Right now they just seem to keep it maintained enough to not taint their brand.

I wonder what happens to it after HFEC divests... I imagine they will try to keep it going as-is. Can't beat the location, so if they just keep it maintained it should be able to stay in business at least.

At one point, SF had the opportunity to manage Magic Springs, but passed on it. I think they are savvy enough to understand what it would take to make the park work, and the ROI just isn't there. You'd think it has potential, due to being the only theme park in Arkansas and being part of the Hot Springs tourist area. That being said, most people don't go to Hot Springs to go to a theme park. They are either on the lake or going to the spas. Like I said earlier though, the water park did OK - or at least it was doing OK the last time I was there some years ago.

Interesting. I seem to recall way back in the day they tried the video thing for a couple of seasons, but it was an older technology. I think it was long enough ago that they actually gave you a CD with the video on it?

The vertical video thing sounds like a great way to both generate some free publicity and monetize people's social media addictions. Plus its another tool to stop people from taking their phones out on rides. 

Magic Springs has apparently announced their intentions to close the Arkansas Twister roller coaster. https://screamscape.com/html/magic_springs.htm

Weirdly, they are also saying that they don't plan to demolish it, but are just going to abandon it in place. It is in kind of a weird off-shoot location of the park, but it's large enough people are going to notice it... This raises questions about whether or not the whole park is about to shut down. The water park makes a bit of money, but the rides park is a mess and hasn't been invested into for years now. It's all owned by a property REIT that, last I checked, mostly invested into ski resorts. I think they also own Frontier City?

This coaster should have been their star attraction, but they never seemed to maintain it well - although that goes for just about every ride in the park. Years ago I ventured over there specifically to ride it. I really liked the layout, but the cars just absolutely bounced around the track to the point I felt like I was actually in real danger. I think they had the last couple of cars blocked off because anyone riding in them would get whiplash, lol. The front seat was the only chance at a tolerable ride - luckily there was no line at all. I haven't been back since 2018 or so... I can't imagine it improved. Something tells me they didn't have a choice with this closure.

They were in pretty rough shape, but I hope there is a plan to bring them back in some way. I miss all the signage and funny scenes. I even miss the big entrance signs for both Wildfire and Powderkeg. That area needed some attention after 20+ years of just sitting and slowly losing things. I'm sure they have a plan for it all.

Something is still screwy with these boards. I tried to move this to the "Other Parks" discussion and combine with the thread that I created, but I can't get it to select the right board to move to. Sorry!