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Historic Jersey Shore amusement park closes after generations of family thrills

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Historic Jersey Shore amusement park closes after generations of family thrills


By Wayne Parry, The Associated Press

OCEAN CITY, N.J. — For generations of vacationers heading to Ocean City, the towering “Giant Wheel” was the first thing they saw from miles away.

The sight of the 140-foot-tall (42-meter) ride let them know they were getting close to the Jersey Shore town that calls itself “America’s Greatest Family Resort,” with its promise of kid-friendly beaches, seagulls and sea shells, and a bustling boardwalk full of pizza, ice cream and cotton candy.

And in the heart of it was Gillian’s Wonderland Pier, an amusement park that was the latest in nearly a century-long line of family-friendly amusement attractions operated by the family of Ocean City’s mayor.

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But the rides were to fall silent and still Sunday night, as the park run by Ocean City’s mayor and nurtured by generations of his ancestors, closed down, the victim of financial woes made worse by the lingering aftereffects of the COVID-19 pandemic and Superstorm Sandy.

Gillian and his family have operated amusement rides and attractions on the Ocean City Boardwalk for 94 years. The latest iteration of the park, Wonderland, opened in 1965.

“I tried my best to sustain Wonderland for as long as possible, through increasingly difficult challenges each year,” Mayor Jay Gillian wrote in August when he announced the park would close. “It’s been my life, my legacy and my family. But it’s no longer a viable business.”

Gillian did not respond to numerous requests for comment over the past week.

People ride the flying chair attraction at Gillian’s Wonderland, the popular amusement park on the boardwalk in Ocean City, N.J., during its final day of operation before shutting down for good, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Wayne Parry)AP

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Sheryl Gross was at the park for its final day with her two children and five grandchildren, enjoying it one last time.

“I’ve been coming here forever,” she said. “My daughter is 43 and I’ve been coming here since she was 2 years old in a stroller. Now I’m here with my grandchildren.”

She remembers decades of bringing her family from Gloucester Township in the southern New Jersey suburbs of Philadelphia to create happy family memories at Wonderland.

“Just the excitement on their faces when they get on the rides,” she said. “It really made it feel family-friendly. A lot of that is going to be lost now.”

There were long lines Sunday for the Giant Wheel, the log flume and other popular rides as people used the last of ride tickets many had bought earlier in the year, thinking Wonderland would go on forever.

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A local non-profit group, Friends of OCNJ History and Culture, is raising money to try and save the amusement park, possibly under a new owner who might be more amendable to buying it with some financial assistance. Bill Merritt, one of the non-profit’s leaders, said the group has raised over $1 million to help meet what could be a $20-million price tag for the property.

N.J. amusement park

Rotating letter signs spell out “Wonderland” along the facade of Gillian’s Wonderland, the popular amusement park on the boardwalk in Ocean City, N.J., during its final day of operation before shutting down for good, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Wayne Parry)AP

“Ocean City will be fundamentally different without this attraction,” he said. “This town relies on being family-friendly. The park has rides targeted at kids; it’s called ‘Wonderland’ for a reason.”

The property’s current owner, Icona Resorts, previously proposed a $150-million, 325-room luxury hotel elsewhere on Ocean City’s boardwalk, but the city rejected those plans.

The company’s CEO, Eustace Mita, said earlier this year he would take at least until the end of the year to propose a use for the amusement park property.

He bought it in 2021 after Gillian’s family was in danger of defaulting on bank loans for the property.

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At a community meeting last month, Gillian said Wonderland could not bounce back from Superstorm Sandy in 2012, the pandemic in 2020 and an increase in New Jersey’s minimum wage that doubled his payroll costs, leaving him $4 million in debt.

Mita put up funds to stave off a sheriff’s sale of the property, and gave the mayor three years to turn the business around. That deadline expired this year.

N.J. amusement park

People ride the log flume at Gillian’s Wonderland, the popular amusement park on the boardwalk in the Ocean City, N.J., during its final day of operation before shutting down for good, Sunday, Oct. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Wayne Parry)AP

Mita did not respond to requests for comment.

Merritt said he and others can’t imagine Ocean City without Wonderland.

“You look at it with your heart, and you say ‘You’re losing all the cherished memories and all the history; how can you let that go?’” he said. “And then you look at it with your head and you say, ‘They are the reason this town is profitable; how can you let that go?’”

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Follow Wayne Parry on X at www.twitter.com/WayneParryAC





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Are all Freedom Fuel locations $3.47? Not anymore

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Are all Freedom Fuel locations .47? Not anymore


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President Donald Trump is touting a new fuel option for motorists: Freedom Fuel, advertising gas at a discount price to local consumers.

When the network was opened and announced on July 7, it advertised $3.47 per gallon regular gas at the pumps, a noticeable difference from national and state averages in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

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But is the gas actually as cheap as the 47th President says?

According to some gas tracking platforms, it may not be.

On GasBuddy, a website tracking gas prices across the country with a pricing heat map based on user submissions, some of the Freedom Fuel locations’ pricing appeared to have risen.

Some still sporting the names of what appeared to be their previous sites, like a Gas N Go on Island Ave, the following addresses on GasBuddy match those listed as one of Trump’s 25 gas stations.

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The pricing, however, varies:

  • 2200 Island Ave, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – $3.57 as of July 8
  • 400 Baltimore Pike, Springfield, Pennsylvania – $3.57 as of July 9
  • 6243 Chestnut St., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – $3.57 as of July 9
  • 6800 E. Baltimore Ave, Lansdowne, Pennsylvania – $3.57 as of July 9
  • 6801 Tilton Rd., Egg Harbor Township, New Jersey – $3.89 as of July 8
  • 6501 Delilah Rd., Egg Harbor Township New Jersey – $3.57 as of July 9

Much about the gas station network remains unknown, like how long they’ll be operating or where stations could be popping up next.

Administration officials told USA TODAY on July 8 that the federal government has no role in the Freedom Fuel Network, nor is it providing it with funding.

The White House also said that “no other entity or person” is subsidizing the cost of gasoline.

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Contributing: Michelle Del Rey USA TODAY NETWORK

Kaitlyn McCormick is a Philadelphia-based reporter writing all things trending, breaking and city-related for USA TODAY’s Philadelphia Metro Connect Team.



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Family describes frantic moments delivering baby on the NJ Turnpike

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Family describes frantic moments delivering baby on the NJ Turnpike


JERSEY CITY, N.J. — Mile marker 113.3 on the eastern spur of the New Jersey Turnpike in Secaucus will forever be an incredible memory for one family, who scrambled to deliver their baby boy right on the side of the road.

Kristen Fast was in labor last week, with her husband driving her to the hospital on the turnpike, but when they got to the mile marker, baby Archer couldn’t wait any longer and had to be delivered on the highway.

Archer insisted on arriving three days before he was due, and maybe it was because his lovely big sister, 4-year-old Zelda, was waiting for him.

He was in such a hurry, he didn’t even let mom and dad get to the hospital for him to be born, although they tried.

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“The doula said, ‘pull over, hang up, call 911.’ So we did that. We called 911. The operator started walking him through what to do,” said Archer’s mother, Kristen Fast.

“Next thing I know, I get in the back seat, and we’re making sure she’s comfortable, and I look down, and that baby is ready to go,” said Archer’s dad, Alex Fast.

New Jersey State Trooper Freddie Guacamaya responded to Alex’s 911 call.

“Cop comes, puts on his gloves, and he was fantastic,” Alex Fast said.

“I said, ‘Are you the EMT?’ And he didn’t answer. So I said, ‘You are not an EMT. I’m in danger.’ But he was fine, he was being very calm,” Kristen Fast said.

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“They said, ‘you got to clamp that cord right away. If you have anything, if you have a string.’ So I panicked and just looked in the front and we just had an iPhone cable. So we just clamped the cord with an iPhone cable,” Alex Fast said.

“The EMTs came, and they said, ‘What is this?’” Kristen Fast said.

The loving, kind courtesies extended to the family just continued, helping to make their emergency experience flawless.

“There were three policemen who showed up. I said, ‘I’d love to be with her in the ambulance.’ And they were amazing. They drove our car to the hospital for us, which was so nice. They paid for our valet,” Alex and Kristen Fast said.

They were all welcomed to Hackensack University Medical Center with a healthy baby and a hearty story, backed by Archer’s exact birthplace, recorded accurately: New Jersey Turnpike I-95, mile marker 113.

“Archer’s healthy. He’s thriving. He’s a Jersey boy through and through. I don’t think you get more Jersey than being born on the New Jersey Turnpike,” Kristen Fast said.

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New Jersey

What to know about Freedom Fuel Network as Trump urges cheaper gas prices in Pennsylvania, NJ

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What to know about Freedom Fuel Network as Trump urges cheaper gas prices in Pennsylvania, NJ


PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) — There are 25 new Freedom Fuel Network gas stations opening across the Philadelphia area and South Jersey as Americans closely watch gas prices.

This comes after President Trump announced the privately-owned network on social media last week, saying it will help drivers save money at the pump.

There are 25 new Freedom Fuel gas stations opening across the Philadelphia area and South Jersey as Americans closely watch gas prices.

The first location in Dresher, Montgomery County, opened on Friday, with the price of $3.47 per gallon.

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This cost was a nod to President Trump serving as the nation’s 47th president.

However, that price has already started to rise after the president announced new U.S. strikes, sending oil and gas prices higher.

Some of those locations with gas stations participating in the Freedom Fuel Network include Lansdowne, Bensalem and Pottstown in Pennsylvania; and Marlton in New Jersey.

Gas Calculator: Find out how much it costs to fill your tank

A White House official told ABC News the administration is not involved with the company and is not providing any funding or subsidies.

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Instead, the company says it is cutting its own profit margins to offer lower prices.

Some drivers are applauding this move while others, including gas analysts, are skeptical.

“$3.47 a gallon is a Godsend, honestly,” said one consumer. “Great price because this was a Sunoco before and prices were a lot higher.”

“I want Americans to be asking, ‘Where is that money coming from? Why are corporations and businesses willing to subsidize gas 50-cents a gallon for people, to make President Trump look good,” said another consumer.

Trump is also encouraging other gas retailers to lower their prices. He has not identified the company behind Freedom Fuel, saying only that it’s a private retailer.

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Action News is still working to learn how long these lower prices will last and whether more stations will open.

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