Multi-use entertainment site, capital-raising to replace amusement park
OCEAN CITY — The advocacy group doesn’t have any claim to the site, but it does want city officials to know it has ideas about what should replace the former Wonderland Pier amusement park — and it’s not a luxury hotel.
The group Ocean City 2050 on March 12 announced winning submissions to its contest, “Reimagine Wonderland.”
It is putting forward to Ocean City Council concepts and proposals “of viable, positive and exciting alternatives for the northern end of the Ocean City boardwalk.”
Currently, the alternative being put forward by the site’s owner, Eustace Mita, is a 252-room, seven-story hotel and retail complex that would keep a few major amusement rides, including the Ferris wheel and carousel, from the former park.
Starting last fall, Mita has made several public presentations of his $135 million to $150 million project he said would be a benefit to the community.
Mayor Jay Gillian announced in August 2024 he would be closing Wonderland Pier that October because the amusement park was no longer financially viable after nearly 60 years at the corner of Sixth Street and Boardwalk.
Mita purchased the property from Gillian in early 2021 after a bank foreclosed on some $8 million in loans during the COVID-19 pandemic. Mita leased the property back to Gillian so he could continue operating the amusement park.
Even before Mita started showcasing his plans for his hotel, a few community groups arose to either save Wonderland or advocate for other uses for it, fearing Mita, owner of Icona Resorts — which operates upscale hotels in Wildwood Crest, Avalon, Stone Harbor and Cape May — would want to build a hotel in Ocean City.
Ocean City 2050 is a community advocacy group that was formed, its founders say, in response to planning, development and governance on the barrier island. Along with the related group Friends of Ocean City History & Culture, they have proposed their own ideas about uses for the site.
The contest Ocean City 2050 sponsored came up with three winning submissions and described them as:
— Mutli-use Entertainment Center #1: The proposal features a unique concept of an adaptable, multi-use entertainment center with features such as revolving food trucks, augmented reality scavenger hunts, light shows and projection mapping, as well as pop-up and rotating attractions, all conveying a restored Wonderland feel but in a fresh, updated and current style.
— Mutli-use Entertainment Center #2: The proposal features pencil drawings of the interior and exterior with both renewed and new structures, while also emphasizing adaptability and new technologies, including an augmented reality enhanced monorail.
— Creative Capital-Raising: The proposal highlighted various ways to raise capital and to offset operating costs; these included “adopting” a horse on the carousel, naming a Ferris wheel cart after a family member, more enhanced souvenir offerings, photo shoot opportunities and others.
In a news release announcing the winning ideas, founding member Jim Kelly explained the contest.
He said it is “a reminder to the members of our City Council that there are other viable options for the former amusement space that are more appropriate to our boardwalk’s character, follow our zoning guidelines, and could bring much-needed entertainment.
“As part of its decision process, City Council has a responsibility to consider a host of viable alternatives before making any decisions around irreversible changes to the location’s zoning, which would not only change the family-friendly character of our cherished boardwalk but also potentially damage Ocean City’s valued claim as ‘America’s Favorite Family-Friendly’ vacation destination.
“We hope the City Council considers all its options and the strong feelings of the many Ocean City residents who oppose the idea of enabling the inappropriate placement of a high-rise resort on our boardwalk.”
The Wonderland Pier site is zoned specifically for amusements. Mita would need a substantial change were he to try to build a hotel at the site.
Mita has not made any formal application to City Council, the Zoning Board or Planning Board for his hotel.
He has talked about seeking to make the site an area in need of redevelopment, which would ease and quicken the path for a different use. He has not done that at this point.
So far Mita has limited himself to public presentations and question-and-answer sessions where he has been met with substantial opposition, but also by other residents who support the idea.
His presentation showed a hotel with about a dozen retail spaces on the ground level. It would abut the public parking lot between Carey Stadium and the boardwalk between Fifth and Sixth streets.
During one presentation, he said if he could not build the hotel he would consider selling the site for about $30 million if someone offered that much.
Ocean City 2050 plans to delve deeper into proposals submitted and inspired by the contest, including assessing their long-term economic feasibility and community benefit.
“We couldn’t be more proud of our Ocean City community,” Kelly said in the release. “The creativity and engagement demonstrated through this contest are a testament to how much our residents care about shaping the future of our town.
“While we can’t bring Wonderland back, with this contest, we have demonstrated that there are viable, community-driven solutions that deserve serious consideration. We invite City Council, local leaders, and all residents to join us in exploring and championing creative alternatives that will shape Ocean City’s future for generations to come.”
Friends of Ocean City History & Culture originally sponsored the contest, before some members of that group formed the related but separate Ocean City 2050, which now oversees it.
– By DAVID NAHAN/Sentinel staff
