With Park Boulevard being rerouted in 2016, a segment of old Park Boulevard was abandoned that is adjacent the main entrance of Hersheypark.
Just a few days after my last Hersheypark update, several local media groups published articles about possible Hersheypark expansion in the coming years.
PennLive
I would characterize our planning process as being more towards the beginning than the end – with any actual master planning development being years off in the future.
— Garrett Gallia, HE&R spokesman
On June 20, PennLive, a local media outlet for the greater Harrisburg area, published an article about the possibility of a big expansion being in the works for Hersheypark. Titled, Could a big expansion of Hersheypark be coming?, and written by Barbara Miller, the article launches into comments from Hershey Entertainment & Resorts Company (HE&R; the owner of Hersheypark) spokesman Garrett Gallia.
Most noteworthy, the article quoted: “I would characterize our planning process as being more towards the beginning than the end – with any actual master planning development being years off in the future,” Gallia said.
“As you can imagine, a lot of ideas come and go as part of this process – so there’s nothing that we are really able to report as being ‘final’ at this point,” he said.
The article also quoted Hersheypark spokeswoman Kathy Burrows.
Meanwhile, Hersheypark isn’t yet saying what it has in store for visitors next year.
“It’s a double tip-top secret,” Burrows said.
Since 2007, Hersheypark has done some sort of viral marketing game to promote the announcement event for a new attraction for the following season. (On June 28, Hersheypark teased they will do this again for what’s coming in 2018.)
The article also mentions: No plans for park expansion have been submitted yet to Derry Township planning commission or supervisors, said Chuck Emerick, township community development director.
The article also takes a detailed look back at the Park Boulevard relocation project which was completed last fall. To read the article on PennLive, click here. It’s worth a read.
Articles from other local media
After the PennLive article was published, several other articles appeared in local media. One was published by LancasterOnline, while the other was published by local television station ABC27.
The ABC27 article, written by Christine McLarty, mentions, The expansion would add about 31 to 38 acres to the amusement park.
The high end, 38 acres, is the full amount of property Hersheypark was able to unify with the Hershey Entertainment Complex after Park Boulevard was relocated in the fall of 2016.
Save the Date
On June 27, Inside Hershey posted a photo featuring a beach ball with text saying “Save The Date 2018 Announcement Tuesday, August 8, 2017.” This would indicate that a new attraction will be going into The Boardwalk.
The following day, Hersheypark posted a picture featuring #Hersheypark2018, telling people to “stay tuned as we reveal clues about what’s coming to Hersheypark next year!”
Maps of markers in Hersheypark
I added a handful pictures to the map, which you can see below. This map has not been updated since June 4, because no new markers have appeared.
- More markers and control points have appeared in Tram Circle.
- A separate map, also below, will show a lot of markers that have appeared in The Boardwalk.
What this means for this area of what now is directly part of Hersheypark’s property remains unknown for the time being.
Take a look at the map below to see pictures provided by Matthew Meckley in the Disney Lovers at Hersheypark group on Facebook.
Hersheypark also began placing similar markers in The Boardwalk region of the park. The area impacted so far appears to be mostly where part of the park’s only water coaster, Roller Soaker, once stood.
Roller Soaker was a steel, suspended, roller coaster in which you carried a bucket of water to drop on “unsuspecting” people below the ride. The ride was installed in 2002 and removed following the 2012 season, after having many maintenance issues throughout that ten year period.
Here is another map showing markers from this area of the park, with pictures provided by Matthew Meckley in the Disney Lovers at Hersheypark group on Facebook.
No new markers have appeared in this area since June 4, so this map has not been updated.
This article is part of a series of Hersheypark Update articles which will be added when necessary. The updates to this area are pretty historically significant given that Hershey Park Pool, Starlight Ballroom, and Hershey Creamery used to be in this area. However, with the addition of markers appearing in The Boardwalk, in the area where Roller Soaker used to stand, I will also have updates on that area as necessary. Keep checking back for more!
