CINCINNATI — After more than 125 years of business, Coney Island is shutting down.
The amusement park announced Thursday that effective Dec. 31, 2023, Coney Island will be "permanently ceasing operations."
Coney Island first opened in 1886 with Sunlite Pool opening in 1925.
Dennis Speigel started to work there 34 years after the pool opened.
“I began as ticket taker at the front gate in 1959. I worked through junior high, high school and college," he said. “Kind of a sad moment for me to see it go, but I understand why."
Speigel was shocked by the news, but said there were signs this was eventually coming.
"I have watched the Coney Island project shrink and diminish over the last few years. We saw the rides go away," he said.
Still, Speigel said its closure is a loss for Cincinnati.
"We have been proud to provide a place where so many wonderful memories were created for families," the park said in a statement. "We thank the millions of patrons and employees from Cincinnati and surrounding neighborhoods."
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The park was acquired by Music & Event Management Inc. (MEMI), which is a subsidiary of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra (CSO).
MEMI is set to turn the amusement park into a "cutting-edge," $118 million music venue.
“Our goal is elevate Cincinnati’s music scene and make it a must play area for all musicians out on tour," said MEMI Vice President of Marketing Rosemarie Moehring.
The music venue is set to be a "first-of-its-kind" in the Greater Cincinnati area, MEMI said. The venue will have "cutting-edge performance and entertainment technology" alongside "best-in-class amenities."
It will also have an advanced sound system and an adaptable seating arrangement.
"It will be designed to maximize all components of live outdoor music events," said Mike Smith, CEO of MEMI.
Smith and Jonathan Martin, president and CEO of CSO, said they are looking to create "the nation's best amphitheater."
The amphitheater is supposed to complement both Riverbend and PNC Pavilion, which are amphitheaters located directly next to Coney Island.
“The location is good in the sense that it creates a unique one-of-a-kind entertainment complex that I don’t believe exists right now in the United States," Moehring said.
She said Riverbend will still hold concerts but that number will shrink.
“It will stay in existence, but once the new venue is open, and our target date for that right now is spring of 2026, will no longer do concerts on a regular basis at Riverbend. But, we would utilize it in those instances where we were doing festivals."
Moehring said they hope host special events and music festivals at the entertainment complex.
Martin said the new venue will "usher in the future of the music industry."
He also said he hopes the venue will both expand the music, arts and entertainment industry in the region as well as boost the local economy.
MEMI said live music contributes $10 billion to the US economy each year, and the larger music tourism ecosystem (tickets, lodging, transportation, etc.) generated $43 billion nationally in 2022.
The venue's preliminary design is currently in progress, and many key decisions have yet to be finalized, Smith and Martin said.
"We are proud to be leading the next step in the same way Riverbend changed the face of live music in our community 40 years ago when it opened," Martin said.
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