Re: Going to Florida
Wonder if it reopened?
November 10, 2008
Cypress Gardens to Close for Rebirth of Park in March - After months of exhaustive analysis by park officials and owners, Florida's first theme park, Cypress Gardens, will temporarily close on Monday, November 17th, for a major renovation. With a reopening scheduled for March of 2009, the plans include expanding the wildly popular water park, while preserving the history and nostalgia of the original park, with a focus on the original botanical gardens and their worldwide notoriety. The ski show shall continue as part of the original park experience. The existing animal area and the ride area will be permanently closed. "The operating expense of running 38 amusement rides, a zoo, the botanical gardens, a ski show, and a water park are considerable," said Cypress Gardens co-owner Rob Harper. "It is obvious the park cannot successfully function as four parks in one. We have some exciting new plans that everyone will be thrilled to see come March," Harper added.
To finish planning for the future of the park and renovate the grounds prior to the March 2009 reopening, Cypress Gardens will complete its last full day of operations on Sunday, November 16. "We are in the process of notifying our employees. The vast majority of them will be temporarily without work at the park during the renovations, and those eligible will be reinstated when renovations are complete," Harper said.
