I mean, with a water ride, you have to be sure that guests have limited exposure to Oxidane or it might be fatal.
News Project 2027/Otter: "Record-Breaking Water Ride"
- Thread starter CrosshairsKD
- Start date
I mean, with a water ride, you have to be sure that guests have limited exposure to Oxidane or it might be fatal.
I'm dense... thought you were referring to 1 4-dioxane or something, which is a real carcinogen found in water within the Cape Fear River Basin in North Carolina.
With a water ride you want to make sure guests also have limited exposure to dihydrogen monoxide or it could be fatal.
According to this video there's some new signs of activity on the site. Nothing too major, just the grass being cut and some marks left from vehicles on site, but hopefully a sign that things will start back up fairly soon.
Top image is the site right now, bottom image is from last month. Both pictures come from Park Adventures on YouTube.
Top image is the site right now, bottom image is from last month. Both pictures come from Park Adventures on YouTube.
My real concern is that there’s still zero sign of any concrete work. There are only a couple—maybe a few—footers in place. By now, I would’ve expected to see a lot more prep, especially for the pool areas. We barely have any holes dug. Yes, most of the underground piping seems to be done, but this still looks way too far behind to feel promising.
I mean, look at Great Adventure—their coaster is confirmed delayed, and it’s already further along than this project. That’s why my theory is that they might just continue working through 2026. Carowinds doesn’t even have a staging area set up yet.
And like Carolina Dog mentioned, the permit doesn’t even expire until October 2028, so Carowinds is in no rush here.
Honestly, pushing the project back a year might not be the worst idea. Sure, it would suck, but rushing it could limit the chances of getting the Fury shortcut, the new dining location, and the overall quality of the area that was originally proposed. For all I care, they could even throw an SFA ride into the plan—if it meant completing this project at 100%, not 75% I am willing to wait another year.
I mean, look at Great Adventure—their coaster is confirmed delayed, and it’s already further along than this project. That’s why my theory is that they might just continue working through 2026. Carowinds doesn’t even have a staging area set up yet.
And like Carolina Dog mentioned, the permit doesn’t even expire until October 2028, so Carowinds is in no rush here.
Honestly, pushing the project back a year might not be the worst idea. Sure, it would suck, but rushing it could limit the chances of getting the Fury shortcut, the new dining location, and the overall quality of the area that was originally proposed. For all I care, they could even throw an SFA ride into the plan—if it meant completing this project at 100%, not 75% I am willing to wait another year.
This isn't on the radar of non-thoosies. Personally, I'm glad it's not an overgrown lot with an old ride falling back into nature, which is what it was for years. That's not a good look so this is a big improvement (plus they saved some trees). It's obvious it's on the way to anybody paying attention and hand wringing on a forum isn't speeding things up.
Hopefully, we’ll get some positive news this weekend as this will be the first full week. They’ve had the land disturbance permit. And by positive news, I don’t mean an announcement just some progress made on the site.
with everything going on with Six Flags, closing parks etc. it's possible that they may have changed their mind and may want to use that plot of land for something a bit bigger.
No new updates or movement on the construction site, nor permitting sites for the flume project, unfortunately.
However, something new did pop up on York County's permitting site. Celebration Plaza's dated, Paramount-era gift shop is finally receiving an interior renovation. This is good to see, and hopefully some exterior aesthetic improvements are in the works as well. The renovation is being completed by TRA design.
This continues Carowinds' focus on improving the aging infrastructure within the park, following 2025's major Camp Store renovation.
However, something new did pop up on York County's permitting site. Celebration Plaza's dated, Paramount-era gift shop is finally receiving an interior renovation. This is good to see, and hopefully some exterior aesthetic improvements are in the works as well. The renovation is being completed by TRA design.
This continues Carowinds' focus on improving the aging infrastructure within the park, following 2025's major Camp Store renovation.
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It is the least they could do to let us know one way or another especially to the season pass holders that bought expecting what had been promised. I know the economy has changed but it doesn’t cost anything to be honest and up front.
The new plans for Premiere's involve:
Interior Improvements:
- New POS space moved into part of the former backroom storage space / store connector between the main shop and candy shop.
- More retail space due to the POS relocation from the main store room.
- New popcorn / sweets stand in what may be "Sweet Spot" come 2026.
- New HVAC systems / improvements.
- New lighting fixture and canopy on the front facing the stage.
- Replacement of windows in the main entrance to install window-doors that can act as additional doors. Previously, Premiere's had a very tight entrance.
- New canopies over the new window-doors.
- Removal of window in the room connecting the main store and the candy shop.
- New sign in the path outside the candy shop.
I do hope there are more significant exterior improvements that don't necessarily require permitting. These old buildings are in desperate need of refreshing, so it's great to see. Hopefully more of Celebration Plaza gets fixed up before the inevitable new centerpiece coaster. Camp Store received this same treatment in 2025. The next place I'd love to see a massive revitalization of is the Carowinds Cafe to the right of the main entrance plaza.
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Just a suggestion — would it be worth reaching out to the park? Isn’t that how we found out about Magic Mountain?
From what I’ve learned, when you reach out to parks you usually need to contact someone directly. But with the new regional management, it’s a bit more tricky now. Ideally, someone in this thread has a contact.
The fact that we haven’t even gotten a delay announcement is mind boggling. If it was delayed you’d think that they would have said something by now
As we enter the off-season, we are more likely to receive news and updates as the park shifts focus from operations and towards numerous off-season projects they have planned.
The flume project has been approved, and land disturbance permit granted, but the required pre-construction meeting has not occurred and has no scheduled date currently. I'm not aware of the construction timeline they were anticipating to complete this project, so who knows if it's even possible they can get this attraction open for the mid-late summer.
We may also see new plans for future projects, or a revised version of this project pop up in the coming weeks. You never really know. During construction of Camp Snoopy's 2025 expansion, numerous park improvement projects popped up. One of these was the swim-up bar they installed. For 2026, we already have the Premiere's Gift Shop remodel that's been approved to begin work.
As always, we're just gonna have to be patient and wait and see.
The flume project has been approved, and land disturbance permit granted, but the required pre-construction meeting has not occurred and has no scheduled date currently. I'm not aware of the construction timeline they were anticipating to complete this project, so who knows if it's even possible they can get this attraction open for the mid-late summer.
We may also see new plans for future projects, or a revised version of this project pop up in the coming weeks. You never really know. During construction of Camp Snoopy's 2025 expansion, numerous park improvement projects popped up. One of these was the swim-up bar they installed. For 2026, we already have the Premiere's Gift Shop remodel that's been approved to begin work.
As always, we're just gonna have to be patient and wait and see.