I don't think anyone's interested in what people do in their backyards, unless they're sunbathing in the nude. Gardening and yardwork aren't that interesting. BBQs and kids running around can already be seen around the park.
Also, there's a NL2 day/night POV.
Bruh, if this is the layout we're getting, this is going to be a top 5 for so many thoosies.
I grew up in Buena Park, very close to Knott's and spent about half of my life there. I do think they consider the neighborhood when they are building new attractions to some extent (ie: Ghostrider's drop shield, Supreme Scream's diffusers, etc) but I also think they realize they are almost entirely boxed in in terms of expansion. They own quite a bit of land around the park but logistically I think it makes more sense to move towards the Crescent lot first.
Personally, I believe this type of project is not the right direction for Knott's now. I'd much rather see an expansion of Ghost Town or some dark ride/family friendly attractions put in if they are going to expand. It seems like a lot of real estate for one ride and just reminds of me of the early 00's era of Cedar Fair. The most exciting part of these rumored plans is the parking structure, and if they could operate it on a similar level to how Disneyland operates theirs I think that would be incredibly helpful all year.
I hear ya. I totally agree that families are the demographic they should be focusing more on. I think a SLoP style dark ride themed to KoD would be amazing for the park. Would also love to see a Vekoma Madhouse themed to the Haunted Shack. Even a Firechaser Express type of family coaster that goes over Calico Rapids and into a building would be a great family coaster for the park. Why not build a small Peanuts dark ride as well? Those are some ideas I have for some solid family rides for the park.
At the same time, I don't think it's wrong to have a little variety. One of the reasons why I love Knott's so much is that it provides something in the SoCal Market that the other parks can't provide: theme
and thrill. Here in SoCal, you can either have the thrills of Six Flags
or the theming of USH and DLR. Knott's at least is able to provide both. Knott's is the closest remedy for IoA in SoCal in that the park provides something for thrill seekers and themed experiences for Disney goers. Plus, they have done a good job at winning back the families in the 2010's as opposed to the 00's when they didn't and suffered. Knott's is Cedar Fair's most profitable park
by far and it's the only major CF park that does not have a giga coaster. Something this caliber will gain national attention with enthusiast and more importantly, the GP. I can already see the GP reacting to the "world's biggest, scariest , and fastest" coaster on YouTube reaction videos.
I would agree that this would've been a late 90's/mid 00's CF move if they tore out half of Ghost Town to make room for this. However, the great thing is that the intrusion upon Ghost Town from this will be minimal, if not nonexistent. Yeah, you're gonna see a steel behemoth in the distance of GT but at least it won't straight-up roar through it. The fact that they're bending over backwards to expand the park and keep the integrity of Ghost Town while working around the surrounding facilities to make this happen tells me they still care about the overall vision for the park,
Besides, if you're concerned all they will care about at this point is "MOAR COASTERZ!!!!", I don't see them adding another coaster for at
least another five years. During that time, I'm sure they will put their focus back on themed family rides as they have finally found their identity as a family park that also happens to provide thrills. Until then, Knott's could use a high-capacity thrill ride. Something the park really needs as their coasters aren't exactly high-capacity.