There was a sign there the year before Drop Tower was installed that said something like Dropping in next year. Kind of like the one that was on the tower before the installation.

6 hours ago, Maverick44 said:

You know what I was thinking. They really should of put WindSeeker in that spot. The over head pic looks like that same size circle.

It's definitely not big enough for WindSeeker without doubling the size of the platform. It's hard to tell from the ground, but I've been up there while working and there's just not enough room. Razing the mound might add enough room, but it's be pretty cozy with Racer, cozier than it is currently.

Ahh I see. Just think it would be better for The Vortex exit and that whole area haha

I'm having amnesia - what is in the area that I've circled in this pic? I seem to remember it being nothingness but the aerial view looks like it used to be something? 

 

That is the flight commander pad.  Its been used for various things since Flight commander was taken down, there was the giant inflatable ball thing for a season (or more) that I never did; they had picnics up there for a season or two as part of a the Dinosaur Alive group party package.  Perhaps one or two more things thru time as well.  The the Merch Tent up for DA in that pic, I think that view represents the period when they had party picnic for DA.

Was that area used for the helicopter flights over KI at one point?  It was a long time ago, but I can't recall where they took of from, or if they even took off from KI or not (perhaps the little used warren county airport up the road)

1 minute ago, medford said:

That is the flight commander pad.  Its been used for various things since Flight commander was taken down, there was the giant inflatable ball thing for a season (or more) that I never did; they had picnics up there for a season or two as part of a the Dinosaur Alive group party package.  Perhaps one or two more things thru time as well.  The the Merch Tent up for DA in that pic, I think that view represents the period when they had party picnic for DA.

Was that area used for the helicopter flights over KI at one point?  It was a long time ago, but I can't recall where they took of from, or if they even took off from KI or not (perhaps the little used warren county airport up the road)

Ahh Gotcha! I didn't realize how much space was truly open there with DA gone. The merch tent and walk up area is a huge space when you combine it with that area. 

I remember the helicopter rides as well but I can't remember where they took off from - I can't imagine it being from that spot since helicopters create a lot of wind during takeoff...but who knows! I'm sure someone else here knows and will hopefully chime in! 

Actually I'll amend my statement above a little, if they didn't take off from KI, it may have been the sort of defunct landing strip off of the 48 by-pass just 1 exit up the highway.  The concrete strip is in shambles, but there is still a grass landing strip that occasionally gets used.  I know there was an article on here about that "airport" a couple of years ago, just not sure how to find it.

The helicopter pad was back by where the photo booth for Firehawk is located now.

49 minutes ago, medford said:

Actually I'll amend my statement above a little, if they didn't take off from KI, it may have been the sort of defunct landing strip off of the 48 by-pass just 1 exit up the highway.  The concrete strip is in shambles, but there is still a grass landing strip that occasionally gets used.  I know there was an article on here about that "airport" a couple of years ago, just not sure how to find it.

My father used to take off there a lot about 30-40  years ago. I was not around to witness it though. I could ask him what he remembers about it.  Only thing I remember hearing was one day him and his co-pilot was trying to land, they caught a nasty wind shear and flipped the plane. 

 

Back on subject though. 

Ask and you shall receive:  The Lost Airport of Lebanon

3 hours ago, IndyGuy4KI said:

The helicopter pad was back by where the photo booth for Firehawk is located now.

It was actually a bit further back and to the left, roughly in the footprint of FH. if you were in the extended que for FOF, you could see it quite clearly.  They ran about 2-3 tours an hour at its height.

Why was the helacoptor tours taken out?

The neighbors were complaining about the constant noise of the helicopter, I believe.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

The Beast is awake. I see it testing!

One wonders how many residents started living here before the park existed/ started having loud rides late at night.
What noise we might have without them ~


Thankful and disappointed with their noise complaints

When I lived in Burbank, CA, there would be people standing outside the grocery trying to get signatures for petitions to limit the number of evening flights out of the Burbank airport. These were typically people who had bought the homes near the airport that were built after the airport. The whole reason why their homes were able to be purchased for less than a million dollars (and I'm not kidding) was because of their less-than-ideal location. But, yet, they got annoyed they were living next to an airport. 

I despised driving north/south through or around Los Angeles, so I loved being able to fly out of Burbank. So I never signed those petitions. 

44 minutes ago, Magenta Lizard said:

When I lived in Burbank, CA, there would be people standing outside the grocery trying to get signatures for petitions to limit the number of evening flights out of the Burbank airport. These were typically people who had bought the homes near the airport that were built after the airport. The whole reason why their homes were able to be purchased for less than a million dollars (and I'm not kidding) was because of their less-than-ideal location. But, yet, they got annoyed they were living next to an airport. 

I despised driving north/south through or around Los Angeles, so I loved being able to fly out of Burbank. So I never signed those petitions. 

Would you like to sign the petition to make my house worth more money?

I'm a bit apathetic to those situations. Live near a body of water without flood insurance, then complain that you lost everything. What did you expect?

Honestly I'll feel sad if i have to move again and have to get a house so far away i can hear the fireworks.

With the park pushing 50 years old, there have to be very few people who were living nearby before a theme park was built, and there has been plenty of time to see which way the wind was blowing and get out if they didn't like it. There have to be vanishingly few people who make noise complaints about Kings Island that didn't know they were moving near it.

That's why I get really worried about the proposed plan to put apartments in the former KI resort property. A whole lot of people would be (or will be) moving next to the park (and a busy highway) and just because they know or should know they're moving next to the park, it won't prevent some of them from making complaints about the noise and traffic the park creates. 

With the park pushing 50 years old, there have to be very few people who were living nearby before a theme park was built, and there has been plenty of time to see which way the wind was blowing and get out if they didn't like it. There have to be vanishingly few people who make noise complaints about Kings Island that didn't know they were moving near it.
That's why I get really worried about the proposed plan to put apartments in the former KI resort property. A whole lot of people would be (or will be) moving next to the park (and a busy highway) and just because they know or should know they're moving next to the park, it won't prevent some of them from making complaints about the noise and traffic the park creates. 

With the recent trends by CF, I would look at them possibly purchasing the former Kings Island Inn land and developing it for out of town guests. They may just get it at a good price since the development that was supposed to go there is having troubles getting off the ground. If you look at Carowinds and CP, they are adding lodging for guests to improve their overall stay. I wouldn’t even doubt CF might pull off something like the sports park in Sandusky down in Mason, maybe on a smaller scale. I also wouldn’t doubt a camp ground returning to KI. Just an educated guess on my part.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

The longer it has gone that no visible activity was happening on that land, the better it has made me feel. Actual hotels or other development that would contribute to Kings Island rather than detract from it (as I believe housing would) has seemed almost too good to hope for.

Doing a campground/ resort would be a great idea for them. Doing both would be highly profitable for them in my opinion. I would drag my camper out from Indy to camp there, and I think many others would too. This is a place where Disney shines a bit. They have a camp ground and multiple major resorts. Sure the park entry fees make it a little less likely that you're going to attract all kinds across all economic backgrounds, but the offer is there to camp on the property. Kings Island is the kind of park that the price of entry is not horrible, and is quite affordable for people to make it a 2 or 3 day mini vacation. Give people a less expensive alternative for lodging, throw a tent, pull in your camper, have a place to go for lunch and dinner that doesn't require you to spend money in the park, and you're actually going to draw more people in. Sure it's not AS profitable in the long run because it's less food profits, but when you give those same people the opportunity to return to their campers or tents to cook hotdogs over the fire, they're going to have more cash to dump on pure profit items like games. They'll spend more on upcharge attractions as well. I sound like I'm trying to sell this idea.... LOL

5 minutes ago, lifetimecoaster said:

Doing a campground/ resort would be a great idea for them. Doing both would be highly profitable for them in my opinion. I would drag my camper out from Indy to camp there, and I think many others would too. This is a place where Disney shines a bit. They have a camp ground and multiple major resorts. Sure the park entry fees make it a little less likely that you're going to attract all kinds across all economic backgrounds, but the offer is there to camp on the property. Kings Island is the kind of park that the price of entry is not horrible, and is quite affordable for people to make it a 2 or 3 day mini vacation. Give people a less expensive alternative for lodging, throw a tent, pull in your camper, have a place to go for lunch and dinner that doesn't require you to spend money in the park, and you're actually going to draw more people in. Sure it's not AS profitable in the long run because it's less food profits, but when you give those same people the opportunity to return to their campers or tents to cook hotdogs over the fire, they're going to have more cash to dump on pure profit items like games. They'll spend more on upcharge attractions as well. I sound like I'm trying to sell this idea.... LOL

Campgrounds take up more space and aren't as profitable as hotels. Also, like you mentioned, you give people an easier route to avoid buying food at the park. The amount of people not coming to the park because they don't offer a campground is going to be small enough that there is not enough ROI. Theres a reason there isn't one there any more. 

Fair statement for sure, I often forget that they tried that once already. I like to look at all avenues of potential profit (and also like traveling with my camper, so I'm biased), and the thought of camp grounds seems like a potential attendance driver. Is it the right attendance? I can see argument both directions, but as you pointed out, they've been there and done that, and probably have the answers. 

I think the park definitely needs a more diverse lineup of hotels and resorts. Great Wolf Lodge is a stellar hotel/water park but even with discounts its often too expensive for some families on a budget. Look at GWL in comparison to other hotels in the area. If Kings Island built a medium sized hotel that averages around $100 or less per night with perks like free parking and early admission, I think you'd see more people from out of town. 

I don't think KI's location works in line to make it more of a resort like Cedar Point.  KI is in a much more urbanized area than Cedar Point and there's way more to do within, say,  a 20 mile radius of Kings Island than a similar radius around Cedar Point.  

Coney BarBQue is official.  Go under explore on the KI website.

https://www.visitkingsisland.com/explore/executive-chef-coney-bbq

Quote

"Coney Bar B Que will be joining Kings Island’s restaurant lineup in 2018.  This new fast-casual dining location will offer various barbecue favorites including smoked St. Louis-style ribs, pulled pork, rotisserie chicken and Queen City Sausage along with a fresh selection of side dishes. Located in the Coney Mall area of the park, next to the Scrambler, the restaurant’s architecture and theming will pay tribute to the early days of Kings Island and Coney Mall. Covered outdoor seating areas will feature views of Coney Mall and the Grand Carousel. The restaurant will open at the beginning of the 2018 season."- Kings Island

Holy schnikes that's huge!

New executive chef.  But what about Chef Nate?  Tweeted as recently as Saturday 3/24/18.  

 

Like the look of the new building.

I like the look of the building as well.  It fits the area nicely.  I'm still curious to see if we get a Mac and Cheese bar somewhere else in the park in an existing restaurant.

Nice fancy building they designed, I like it!  I was hoping they'd put in a clock on it and they did!  Great idea!