Jobe

Interesting points Jamberoo Fan. Just to clarify to your point- Luna Park ARE claiming that the DA exemptions affect Luna Park's long term heritage. If they cannot get the DA process clarified so that they can ADD new attractions and rides and refresh the park, they are then saying that the parks viability and its future is at risk. Since the owners of Luna Park are tasked with maintaining and keeping the historical aspects of Luna Park's heritage ( such as the towers, Wild Mouse, Coney Island and Crystal Palace and indeed the overall precinct) this then affects the future of such attractions. This is the basis of their claim and , going by what you have stated, you would appear to agree with this assessment. Furthermore, they are now seeking clarification regarding the installation of temporary rides and attractions at peak and seasonal times. ( and to which the NSW government has now seen to amend in LPS favour) This is a function of the way that the process has been interpreted NOW. As stated before , Luna Park does have a significant precedent to this as they have operated and installed over 200 temporary attractions over the past 12 years WITHOUT issue. Why is there now an onerous and ill conceived interpretation of the said process when this has been normal practice for the past 12 years? The temporary rides and attractions that Luna Park have installed over the past 12 years have in part, enabled them to be in the financial position they are now in for them to make a $20 million investment back into new attractions and refresh the park. In other words, keeping the park relevant. True these rides themselves do not form part of the long term heritage of the park, however, they significantly add to the function and cash flow that KEEPS these heritage attractions alive, maintained and open to the public. I think that is a pretty strong reason and claim for Luna Park to move forward in seeking exemption from the DA process for the installation of temporary attractions. Your claim that this should apply to all theme parks across NSW is , in my mind, flawed. As with anything, each case must be met on its own merits. Jamberoo is not a heritage listed precinct last time I looked, it is not surrounded by volatile residents in high rise apartment towers directly adjacent to the park nor does it , by your own words, ever have installed a temporary attraction in "20 years" Its long term viability is not at risk if it cannot add temporary attractions at seasonal times like at Luna Park. The comparison , in my opinion , is really chalk and cheese.

100% agree that Universal is not a good fit for purchasing Dreamworld. Slightly off topic , but which operator could get the best out of Dreamworld and who would be the best fit? Merlin? Cedar Fair? Six Flags? Parques Reunidos ( whic I think is the most likely..)

Yeah agree Joz- to me its a massive missed opportunity. as an aside, does anyone know if there is a massive difference in cost between the 2 models?

Nimble that was my thought as well- I thought that Luna Park's Love Express was purchased by a travelling showman that toured then went to Darling Harbour and back to Luna Park in 1994. Happy to be proven wrong if you have alternative info @19Michael96? To be clear here, the temporary ride strategy is only for peak and seasonal times . It is not an unusual strategy and is designed to provide buzz to the park in offering 2 or 3 extra attractions. Whilst they may not be everyone's cup of tea, they certainly provide the park with a good strategy to attract more visitors to the park at these times. I know my kids and their friends love to see what is coming over summer for the January school holidays, so do not discount the broad appeal that they have. Luna Park Melbourne is also operating on a similar strategy to great success. Rides such as Crazy Coaster, Pirates Revenge, The Avenger, Hard Rock , Freak Out and Disk O are all major travelling rides and very popular. Who wouldnt want to reride these again and again in the unique environment of Luna Park, covered under the one park pass at the time? The expense for hiring these rides is quite cost effective and is a factor in helping the park get to the stage where they are ready to pump $20 million in new rides and attractions for the future. Luna Park Melbourne is embarking on a similar strategy so that they can get themselves into the same financial situation where they can invest in new attractions. The costs for keeping the Scenic Railway , Carousel and Ghost train are quite large. This strategy of temporary rides is due to cease once the $20 million investment plan and a full ride compliment has been reached. Its certainly a positive step that the government has recognised that the interpretation of the DA process was onerous for the operators of Luna Park, especially given the numerous precedents over the last 12 years. Hopefully, this leads to an accommodation whereby they can resume the plans for the $20 million investment and continue on the important job of revitalising the park. Thanks for clarifying @HussRainbow87 I would certainly love for a Huss Rainbow unit to reside at LPS......it was in the original plans for the 1995 incarnation you know........love that ride!! It would have been iconic looking out over the harbour to see a Huss Rainbow in full swing!! What a view it could have been!!

Sorry mate forgot to answer your question! Yeah it came up on a Facebook post but there is certainly nothing untoward about it- @19Michael96 mentioned your name in regards to your post and I just replied to it as you saw was posted here. They certainly appear to still function- please visit https://www.northsydney.nsw.gov.au/Home Yeah fair point and I understand where you are coming from. If this was another operator then I would most certainly be apprehensive but the fact that the current managing director Peter Hearne , is on record as saying that this is something they would not do, this does alleviate those concerns somewhat. Plus, as has been shown, the legislation protecting the historical aspects of the park ( buildings, rides and amusements) are separate to any new developments and , in my understanding,take precedent over these. Interesting considering now that the NSW State government is looking to amend their interpretation of this process- 200 temporary rides and attractions over 12 years does demonstrate a fairly large precedent. Agree 100% here. Perhaps although I feel that it is reasonable to think that once the general public at large have read an article on the issue that would then be enough to educate them to form a reasonable opinion on the matter. Thanks for the excellent discussion AlexB, as always good value! What a particularly negative and absurd statement!! Just an observation- every post you submit on Luna Park seems to be very negative or overly criticising- it certainly appears that you have a unhealthy bias or ulterior motive against the park. Discussion and constructive criticism are certainly welcome. However, in my mind, blatant negativity and a particular bias are really not. Just my opinion. " Kinda glad to be honest..." Wow!!! Its like you just want to see the park fail- that statement certainly does nothing to detract from anyone gathering that opinion! Could not agree more mate..... The SBF Tango Train , in my opinion, is a well presented and well themed ride. It has an excellent lighting suite and it looks brilliant in its place along the midway. I certainly concede that it does not present as great a ride as the Mack model but lets give Luna Park a little kudos here. They replaced an old ride that was maintenance heavy and was likely costing money with extensive downtime. Instead of just ripping it out, they gave the ride its due and turned its leaving into a positive and then replaced it with a BRAND NEW ride that replicates the ride it replaces. It is this commitment to new investment in the park that should be celebrated here.

Agree 100% Youtube is a great place to keep up to date with all things amusement parks. @GoGoBoy I rate TimTracker highly. He has some great content and its regular and enjoyable to watch. Theme Park Worldwide has some good content and some amazing trips and vlogs but is constantly hampered by the host of the show Shaun Pembroke and his mates being some of the most annoying cockwombles that I have ever seen. Still worth a view and a laugh until the nauseousness takes over. Theme Park Review still do great videos- they are always worth a watch. Some channels that have not been mentioned that are extremely worthwhile checking out are Theme Park Crazy and Expedition Theme Park. Both have excellent content that is a little different to the run of the mill vlogs and reviews. Expedition Theme Park in particular has some excellent videos on the history of a variety of parks and is called Expedition Extinct. Highly recommended. Theme Park Crazy has some excellent Top 10 lists and he is also extremely prolific. Defunctland is also another great channel for the history of parks , especially Disney attractions. Offhand Disney is one of the best resources for all things of course Disney related. CoasterBot is also a brilliant channel with some excellent "What Is?" videos that relate to anything from how coasters actually work, manufacturers , theme parks themselves or individual rides. Xtreme Rides is a great channel with a particular slant for European parks and rides- well worth a view as well. ParkChat Live , whilst great in being Australian in content , is let down somewhat by the hosts. The new guy is , IMHO, very ordinary to watch and the actual host is all over the place in his delivery. Its actually a chore to get through a whole episode now, especially since James has left- he made the show far more palatable. Still, it does have its high points and is worth checking out every now and then. Needs work though to refine the experience. For websites, as has been mentioned, I cannot go past Screamscape. It has been around for years and years and is still , in my mind , the number one source of all news and rumours for amusement park news worldwide. For all things coaster related, you cannot beat RCDB. The bible for any enthusiast. For Aussie content, then of course our home page Parkz ,is a great asset. Interestingly enough, many international sites do piggy back content from Parkz pages to add to their own international news. I know Screamscape has done this on any number of occasions and this really shows how important Parkz is to the Australian amusement park industry and its standing internationally. Great thread!!

Well. Its unfortunate that a view of mine that was aired in another forum was posted here but it is what it is. Your posting, is as always, fairly thorough , in explaining your view. Its one perception and an interpretation from what you posted but that's not where it ends. However , for mine, and of course for the management and owners Luna Park Sydney, there is another , differing viewpoint. Luna Park has operated since 1935 and during all that time (apart from the time the Park was closed in the 1980’s and 90’s); rides have been brought in, moved around and taken away. In 1990 the first Plan of Management, after extensive public consultation, confirmed Luna Park should continue as an amusement park. A number of development approvals were granted by North Sydney Council in the early 1990’s including the ability to bring rides in from time to time. In 1996 after the Park closed, a new Plan of Management was finalised in 1998 after extensive public consultation. Once again it confirmed the site should remain as a viable amusement park. In early 2000 a number of staged development approvals were granted, covering noise, light, hours of operation and ability to introduce new rides, move rides around and remove rides, excluding heritage rides The recent court decision found that approval had been granted to deal with rides but due to poor drafting further development approval is still required every time a ride (including even inflatables!) are brought into the Park. This was not what the operators of the Park nor the original Development Approvals granted in 2000 had been agreed upon. The problem lies in the current interpretation of the Development Approvals covering the ability to bring in new rides. Luna Park understands that any new ride must comply with the rules and restrictions set out in the 2000 Development Approvals, and have strictly adhered to this as stated in their accords. However, the the poor drafting and ambiguous text of the last Development Approvals has led to the issue we currently have and the differing interpretations ( right or wrong). Luna Park certainly has history showing that they can introduce new rides into the park, or move them around, without the need for a Development application in each case. Case in point is every seasonal ride that is erected and brought into the park for up to 6-8 weeks of the year since the 2004 reopening. Now I am not a lawyer, and neither are you, so we can all have our viewpoints on this same situation. However , until a definitive ruling is handed down, it just becomes a matter of clarification. One thing that I can definitively say is incorrect is your analysis that the park are free to install whatever they want. The historic rides and their locations are protected and are unable to be touched in the manner that you intimate. The park operators run the park on the knowledge that these attractions must be maintained to a set high standard and they cannot be removed or displaced in any way. The park also will not build anything that is out of character with the rest of the park. Every ride they install must fit into their overall vision of what the park stands for. Examples of this are the latest improvements to the Rotor, the awesome 3D facades under the Wild Mouse ( as pictured above) and the refurbishment of the Light House Cafe into the brilliant looking Helter Skelter Tower. Yes the park is in dire need of new rides and attractions but they also know that they have very finicky and troublesome neighbours to deal with. Sadly the days of large coasters coming to LPS ( as much as I would love to see one) are a dead dream. Plus this also goes against the DA's that were set down as mentioned above, as a ride of this nature would operate outside of the operating park envelope as set out in the conditions. This is the reason that the Hair Raiser is as tall as it is- LPS know and understand that while they have the ability to introduce new rides and attractions, they also understand they need to be reasonable neighbours to the nearby residents and NOT install anything that would be considered controversial. So the fear of LPS installing a Tower of Terror ride with a huge Giant Drop are definitely unfounded. LPS are campaigning to the state government to review this decision. Until then, this has delayed the $20 million ride investment as announced in March 2017. Luna Park certainly has strong support from the public on this issue ( a petition of over 5,000 signatures is being readied to present to the state govt) and on their recent tours, Pink and Katy Perry offered messages of support for the park, eliciting their love and fondness for the "place with the big face" across the harbour. A Sydney poll conducted for the park by YouGov Galaxy showed 85 per cent of those surveyed think it's important for the park to continue to operate viably. A further 89 per cent supported the previous planning laws and 63 per cent thought the new rules are "unfair". Of course , this is only public support and nothing is legally binding, but it is encouraging to see that generally , the park is seen in a positive light by the people of Sydney. I am sure this setback will sort itself out, and one way or another, the park will continue to grow and to thrive. Its just my opinion, that this is a setback the park does not really need. I am sure they will over come this latest challenge.

Having been to Manchester mate, I can surely attest to it being a densely populated and modern city. Not sure what being from Manchester signifies but I imagine it would be quite a different experience to having a childhood or growing up in Australia. Buts its a very nice city , I enjoyed its feel and atmosphere a lot.

Funny was only thinking this the other day after watching several Youtube videos that featured similar rides. Adventure World in Perth has something similar. This one in Brazil looks fun.... This one in Germany looks like an Insurance Nightmare!! Looks fun though..... This one is more of a Whitewater river than a slide but they look are far superior to your average Lazy river. Another good one from the Bahamas. This one in England looks fun without any tubes or rafts required. This one at the venerable Action Park requires you to wear a helmet!!!!! Bit too extreme for Australia methinks! This is TeAwa, The Fearless River and Volcano Bay and is far and away the best attraction at this park. This is the type of attraction that our Australian Water parks need- they are massive crowd soakers and lots of fun. I rode this 12 months ago with my family and friends and I reckon we did the loop at least 20 times. Brilliant- if Jamberoo put in something akin to this it would be a highlight attraction. Although when we rode this last year, there was no requirement to wear a safety vest. Would love to see more examples of these type of slides in our parks-they are fun and thrilling yet the whole family can partake. In saying that, I would have loved to have ridden those slides at The Water Works Mt Druitt, although I cant help but feel that the parks may shy away from these type of slides due to slow throughput and propensity for injury and muckraking..... Who else would like to see something similar to these examples in one of our water parks?

Whoa!!! You are not suggesting that they remove the Crystal Palace are you??

Fair point Joz and one that I echo. It may not happen to you but it certainly DOES happen. If you feel that its worth the risk then who are we to judge. Go for it. I for one, am not willing to take that risk as I have seen first hand several times instances of stolen items from parks , and beaches from people who did not mitigate the risk. We travel to Jamberoo on a yearly trip with about 8 families. We simply buy one locker and we all put our various phones, wallets and valuables in this. Cost is negligible. However, even if we were on our own as a family, I have and would always take the locker option. In my mind , its simply the safest and smartest option to take

You are quite correct in that. One of the towers was in bad shape and was in danger of collapsing. They removed them for the '81 opening and this face lasted until 1989, when the park closed for "renovations" The spires ( inspired by the Chrysler Building in New York) were not reinstated until the current face was installed in the 95 reopening.

Just a quick update on Luna Park Melbourne- They will be getting 2 new permanent kids rides in the form of a spinning coaster and a kids Ferris Wheel. The make and model of the coaster has not been confirmed but it has been stated as being geared towards younger guests so i would assume that it could possibly be a SBS Visa model such as the Crazy Coaster at Adventure park in Geelong These rides will be installed over the coming months and i expect them to be in the ride lineup for the January school holidays. There is no mention that these new rides would be replacing anything currently in the park, although given the size of LPM and the fact that it has limited room, I would not be surprised if these rides DID replace existing attractions. The Zamperla powered coaster Silly Serpent that is currently in the park is of a fair age now and it would not be unreasonable to see this new kids coaster replace the Silly Serpent. The park has stated that the space on the old Metropolis site will be retained for seasonal and temporary attractions. They have replaced their trackless train with a new model that boasts increased carriages.over the previous version. A new coaster for the old Metropolis site is very much on the top of their wish list but it is not on the horizon for the next couple of years. The reason for this is the expense and upkeep of their heritage attractions such as Scenic Railway, Carousel and Ghost Train. To keep these attractions running and in good condition requires a large budget and this eats into new attraction investment. ( Plus Lyndsey Fox is being stingy..) The 105 year old PTC Carousel has just completed a very delicate and expensive 12 month refit and is now open again to the public. They will still continue to use the Metropolis site for seasonal and holiday attractions such as the Pirates revenge flume and Crazy Spinning Coaster that they have utilised over the past couple of years. This mirrors their sister park , Luna Park Sydney and their schedule of rotating seasonal/holiday attractions. They have in that space for October the Famous Spiegeltent live attraction which will be in the park for a 3 week stay. I am in Melbourne in January for a couple of weeks and will be visiting Luna park Melbourne, FunFields and Adventure Park with the family, the latter 2 for the first time. I will certainly upload some trip reports and pictures from these parks as they get little attention on these boards compared to their giant Gold Coast cousins. Cheers.

For interests sake- why did you leave Park Chat Live??

Um.....take my 5 year plan and times it by 2?

Bugger!! I was hoping for news of another new ride this year.....fingers crossed that it may still emerge, although unlikely. at this stage. If so they would be teasing the hell out of it! Very effective- it certainly fueled speculation! Will be looking forward to visiting once again in February to check out any changes or new enhancements for this season!! Keep up the good work @Jamberoo Fan!!

Aw diddums. Come on mate- tis only a little joke!! Its no less than what you or anyone else has dished out on occasion!! Just a bit of harmless repartee!! !☺️

☺️ We certainly wouldnt want that!!!! 😆😜

This is such bureaucratic nonsense. Once again forces outside continue to hamper the long term viability and success of Luna Park Sydney. Surely sanity and common sense must prevail!!!

Aussie World have announced their new ride the Typhoon SC 360 will be installed later this year. Here is a screen shot from their Facebook announcement: The Sunshine Coast daily has more info on the below link: https://www.sunshinecoastdaily.com.au/news/coasts-first-adrenalin-charged-thrill-ride-coming-/3471931/ No mention of the new Spinning Mouse Coaster as yet.....fingers crossed it arrives next year sometime.

In a word- shit. Poorly designed, the capacity issues were what really set the tone in its first year of operation. The original plans for the park never came to fruition and we were left with a park that was a shadow of what if COULD have been, Dont get me wrong- there are some excellent slides at the park and with proper management and some investment in the right areas , the park could be excellent.

I believe that the park can be a success. Let's face it, the park has faced many challenges since opening and a new operator with a wealth of experience and new ideas will only be beneficial to the long term viability of the park. Sydney needs this park to survive if it is ever going to have another theme park on the scale of Wonderland again one day. Hopefully, this can be the impetus for Parques Reunidos to build on any success they can have with the park and look at investing in a sister theme park nearby to really own the Sydney market. I hear there is a them park on the Gold Coast that would be ripe for sale to such an operator!!! Perhaps this could be the first of even bigger ventures into the Aussie market!! Time will tell!

Didnt they purchase some of the slides from the ex Seaworld water park? I seem to recall seeing somewhere that the Mammoth Plunge slide going there? Can any one confirm this?

Hi all, Here are a couple of pics and short videos showing how good Luna Park is looking during the Vivid festival. Please note the new look Arabian inspired Helter Skelter light house. Looks awesome and the parks lighting suite is really coming to the fore!! Well done to LPS and the Vivid organisers for a great spectacle. Luna park Vivid Vid 2.mp4 Luna park Vivid.mp4 Luna park Vivid.mp4 Luna park Vivid.mp4

That has already been alluded to by the park and is well within their plans for their major investment over the next 5 years. The HUSS rides going are a near certainty. Moon Ranger has already been listed for sale and is struggling to find a buyer. Flying Saucer is already ( unfortunately as it was the best HUSS ride there) gone to make way for a new attraction. Each of the 4 Huss rides at LPS came from Expo Park in Brisbane from 1988 but they themselves were secondhand in their placement there, with them dating earlier from around 1982. Its time for them to be renewed and the park has recognised this. Nothing new in this info and has already been confirmed.