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Post by Robert on Mar 12, 2005 2:38:52 GMT -5
I have a little rant, it seems Wildwood is in a downward slide, I mean it's bad enough Hunt's Pier closed and we lost Castle Dracula, possibly forever, but the senseless demolition of historic, unique motels one right after the other within the past year or two for cookie cutter condos is stupid. What are they thinking? Last time I was in Wildwood was 1998 when everything was pretty much together and things were looking up. Now what happened? Morey's is turning into one giant thrill ride park much like my hometown park Dorney Park where every new ride the past few years has been a thrill ride, mostly of the upside down variety. What, are parks catering to teens or what? And the Nut Hut is gone? Enough is enough! In 10 years we won't even recognize the place. Those that have kids, I'm sure they never experienced Hunt's the way it was, Ed Zaberer's, or even remember the castle. When they have kids, those kids won't even remember the Nut Hut or Schumann's Restaurant or Doo-Wop motels. Things are changing so rapidly. The Wildwood of my youth (early 80's) is mostly gone. The redevelopment needs to stop. NOW. Hunt's Pier needs to be redeveloped and the Golden Nugget Mine Ride reopened. A new multi-level haunted mansion ride wouldn't hurt, either. Castle Dracula or something similar should return. I want more dark rides, not more thrill rides. And think about all the kids born in the past 15 years. How many of them remember the old Hunt's? Or Zaberer's? Or whatever? The point is that if you don't preserve something, it will be unknown to future generations.
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Post by crazyaboutwildwood on Mar 12, 2005 10:49:29 GMT -5
I dont think wildwood is on a down slide. I think it is on the up but things need to be preserved so we can keep a nice balance of old and new! With that said I am dissapointed to see old landmarks go, and so now it is time to make new ones! The only problem with making new landmarks is that it takes 20 or 30 years for it to become a tradition! Lets all keep are fingers crossed. We still have the moreys, macks, sams, duffers victorian ice cream parlor and minnie golf, and a handful of retro motels, etc, etc, etc. Hunts pier will never come back the way it was. It was like a minnie disney world! Such brilliant people the hunt family, but times have changed. Thrill rides are in and thats what sells!
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Post by DEVIL on Mar 12, 2005 10:52:54 GMT -5
Robert has OCD and has alot of problems. Bottom line Robert about why all of these small room motels and boardwalk stores are closing is money. The bottom line is the dollar sign. They can make more money in the long run. Who wants to spend 300.00 or 400.00 dollars a night on the 4th of July week to stay in a very small smelly old hotel unit. And next door the high school seniors are having a keg party till 5am. Dont be such an idiot Robert. Nothing lasts forever. And remember to take your meds. Love DEVIL
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Post by crazyaboutwildwood on Mar 12, 2005 11:05:01 GMT -5
devil, you make some good points, and your outlook can not go unnoticed. you are 100% correct about the stupid prices and the crazy teenagers and all the bull crap that has screwed things up! We all know robert from dpo and can get really crazy about dark rides, castle drac, bla, bla, bla, bla,................
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Post by Robert on Mar 12, 2005 12:08:43 GMT -5
At least I expect a full restoration of the Golden Nugget by next year. That was one of the best dark rides besides Castle Dracula. It would be a shame to lose that to the wrecking ball, too. The point is unique, one-of-a-kind things like doo-wop motels and custom rides are removed for mass produced things, like condos and thrill rides that you can find anywhere. Other places like Panama City Beach, FL are experiencing the same thing, rampant redevelopment. And their last amusement park, Miracle Strip with it's unique themed rides closed last year after 40 years of operation. They already lost a bunch of other things like a Castle Dracula, Petticoat Junction park, etc. There's a book about it. At least having one amusement park is better than having none at all. If Wildwood goes the same path Panama City did, it will be a dull place. We don't need Wal-Marts in Wildwood. The same thing is happening at amusement parks across the US as corporate companies buy up old parks and convert them to "their way", like every Six Flags has Batman, Superman and every Cedar Fair park has Snoopy. Big companies don't care about preservation, only the Almighty Dollar. Whatever will improve their bottom line and please their shareholders and achieve a ROI. Tall rides sell in this day and age. I think is because there are more teens today than there were in my generation so the teen market is bigger today than the 80's. So, more thrill rides. My school district has twice as many high school students today than it did in my time, the early 90's. They even had to build a new high school to keep up with the increasing number of students. The 60's, 70's was a different era. Life was simpler then. Before internet, cell phones. People then like our parents appreciated those laff in the darks with their glow in the dark ghosts, but today's audiences expect more. (like 400 ft tall coasters) Look at Disney, they're constantly trying to raise the bar. They have the best dark/themed rides anywhere. I hope to God that Knoebel's, etc. never goes "corporate" like Six Flags. If that happens you can say bye bye haunted mansion, hello 500 ft tall coaster.
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Post by crazyaboutwildwood on Mar 12, 2005 14:52:53 GMT -5
You have some good points, but the times are changing and only memories are left. I suspect that in the future there will be as revival period in dark ride type attractions, and in some ways there already is but more like in a disney type way.
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Post by FlyinGN on Mar 12, 2005 16:19:30 GMT -5
everyone has good points. But remember. Nothing says the same over time.. WW has changed.. yes, true. But there are still enough things left to make new memories  Frank |
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Post by Doowopper on Mar 12, 2005 20:02:35 GMT -5
I am not a pessimistic person at all and my attitude remains good for Wildwood. Yeah weve lost many motels but........
-There are tons more motels left than were torn down
-The new street lights are really cool
-The new Wawa is amzingly Wildwood
-Palm tree street name signs!
-Convention center is styles nicely with neon circle things that look cool
-The DWPL is become much more noticed and it's ideas are well like
-Surfside restaraunt being rebuilt and used in either the Crest or Wildwood Proper
-Nouveu Wave hotel, too big, but should be very Wildwood
-New sidewalks are really cool
-Subway has a cool neon sign
-and much more, I truely believe Wildwood will be ok, it won't be easy, but I think as long as people like us are around, Wildwood will remain the unique place it is.
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Post by MMM on Mar 13, 2005 2:14:45 GMT -5
...why all of these small room motels and boardwalk stores are closing is money. The bottom line is the dollar sign. They can make more money in the long run. Who wants to spend 300.00 or 400.00 dollars a night on the 4th of July week to stay in a very small smelly old hotel unit.... Shame on any of these motel owners for letting their rooms get rundown. Not an excuse for demolition either. I don't believe there are any rooms going for $400 a night, even on 4th of July. Their are some that might be charging in the mid $200's - $300/night, but that's not everywhere, and it's usually for larger accomodations in those establishments. |
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Post by MrBoardwalk on Mar 13, 2005 11:23:13 GMT -5
[glow=black,2,300] It seems to me, Robert, you do not know about things such as the amusement industry or business. He only knows how he wants Wildwood to be.[/glow]
[glow=red,2,300]Look on the bright side Robert. You can always relive the boardwalk your way at http://www.mrboardwalk.net[/glow] ;D
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Post by FlyinGN on Mar 13, 2005 11:38:24 GMT -5
I agree with you doo wopper.. As a younger person you never got to live thru the 'original' doo wop of WW. But you younger guys today DO have the things that we oldsters never had like the things you mentioned. Enjoy WW. Its just as good as the old days.. for different reasons.. Frank I am not a pessimistic person at all and my attitude remains good for Wildwood. Yeah weve lost many motels but........ -There are tons more motels left than were torn down -The new street lights are really cool -The new Wawa is amzingly Wildwood -Palm tree street name signs! -Convention center is styles nicely with neon circle things that look cool -The DWPL is become much more noticed and it's ideas are well like -Surfside restaraunt being rebuilt and used in either the Crest or Wildwood Proper -Nouveu Wave hotel, too big, but should be very Wildwood -New sidewalks are really cool -Subway has a cool neon sign -and much more, I truely believe Wildwood will be ok, it won't be easy, but I think as long as people like us are around, Wildwood will remain the unique place it is. |
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Post by Crippled_Visions on Mar 13, 2005 16:11:53 GMT -5
It seems to me that MrBoardwalk doesn't know much about grammar. He should have spent more time in school and less time on the boardwalk.
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Post by DEVIL on Mar 13, 2005 16:40:21 GMT -5
I agree. Anthony must have gone to Carny school where grammar really isnt needed. And Anthony is always plugging his site on here. We all know that www.funchase.com is far superior in content articles and pictures that are from the Boyer museum in Wildwood. So sad that he always has to plug like a hack comic on Stern. HAHA |
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Post by MrBoardwalk on Mar 13, 2005 19:08:16 GMT -5
This is just a message board, not a novel. I didn't know I was going to be graded.
Devil, I bet it makes you feel good.
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Post by DEVIL on Mar 13, 2005 21:45:28 GMT -5
YOU WILL ALWAYS BE GRADED BOARDWALK.....AND YES IT FEELS DAMN GOOD BOY. HEHEHE
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