2 Worlds Parks - Return to Idora!

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10-5-2003

I made it out to 2 Worlds Parks Return to Idora tonight to visit the Hayride of Doom. Not really knowing what to expect, I pulled into the south entrance and proceeded to drive up the gravel drive. Everything was dark except for the path lit by tiki torches! As I got to the fence line (where the big tree is) I still didn't see any cars or lights or anything. I thought maybe I was in the wrong place. I proceeded to drive furthur back (not realizing the land went back half as far as this) and I was directed by parking attendants into rows of cars. Upon exiting the car, I noticed lots of stuff... Over to the right was the famous KiddieLand Fire Truck and a fully restored Wildcat Car! To the left were many things... A ticket booth to purchase tickets for the Hayride of Doom, various picnic tables (maybe for those who weren't looking for a good scare). Also there was the entrance to the hayride, multiple food trailers, and a circle swing ride!

The hayride was very well themed through the woods with many surprising elements (I won't give these away). Many little stations or huts were placed throughout the hayride. Originally I though maybe a sumemr camp had previously been here, but Carl later confirmed that craft festivals used to be held there.

Upon exiting the hayride, they had an information booth where you could ask questions and even pick up 2 Worlds parks Return to Idora merchandise!

Overall I thought this was put together quite well. I commend Carl and the 2 Worlds Parks group for all their hard work and I was impressed by the final product. We at IdoraPark.org are planning an "IdoraPark.org night" on Saturday Oct 18 (this is tentative) so make sure you stop out and meet us!

Images and Movies are below...

*NOTE* I apologize for the darkness of some of the pics (it was dark outside!)

Map of the Grounds (hayride area)
Video of Wildcat Car
Video of Circle Swing Ride
KiddieLand FireTruck 1
KiddieLand FireTruck 2
KiddieLand FireTruck 3
Wildcat Car 1
Wildcat Car 2
Wildcat Car 3
Hayride 1
Hayride 2
Hayride 3

Hope you make it out - You'll be helping support the project, and helping to bring Idora Back!

8-26-03

The 2 Worlds Parks Return to Idora Hot Air Balloon Launch was this past weekend. It seems there were a few minor problems when a couple of the balloons had cancelled, but one did show up! I still commend Carl and the whole 2 Worlds Parks crew for holding this event. I couldn't stay long enough to see the balloon take off, but I did meet my primary objective, to get some good pictures and video of the grounds. Let me just tell you... This place is much bigger then I thought! There is a lot of land! Just take a look at the pics and video:

Video 1 - Video 2 - Video 3 - Video 4

Picture 1 - Picture 2 - Picture 3 - Picture 4 - Picture 5 - Picture 6

Picture 7 - Picture 8 - Picture 9 - Picture 10 - Picture 11 - Picture 12

Picture 13 - Picture 14 - Picture 15 - Picture 16 - Picture 17 - Picture 18

7-19-03

Well I had my meeting with Carl Severino on Tuesday and here is what we talked about…

The 108 acre lot in Milton TWP has been secured and is currently being planned for various events including the Haunted Hayride to help generate funds to move forward with 2 Worlds Parks Return to Idora. The future park has been in the planning stages for over 3 years now, and here is what has been accomplished so far.

As you all know, Carl has secured 108 acres of land on Rt. 534 in Milton TWP. About 20 acres of the land consist of trees and wooded areas. Room for expansion may also be available in the future as well. The Chief of the Milton TWP Police, William Moretz as well as the Head Trustee of Milton TWP, Al Baker have both written letter to Carl expressing their approval and excitement for the park.

I did get to see a copy of Carl’s business plan which is very well organized and very strongly put together. The management team also impressed me very much!

The plans for 2 Worlds Parks Return to Idora are also very involved. As much of Idora as possible will be brought back in the form of old rides and attractions. Both coasters will be recreated and the company that will be making these is none other then Great Coasters International (GCI), which is my favorite wooden coaster designer right now! The rocket ships, Lost River, and a whole lot more are all in the plans to make a return. Also Carl has been in contact with Jane Walentas, which most of you should know is the current owner of the Philadelphia Toboggan Company Carousel # 61, which happens to be Idora’s famous carousel. Jane has been receptive to the idea of bringing it back to the mahoning valley. Plus the park will feature many indoor rides and attractions which will give the park the ability to operate on a year round basis.

The Haunted Hayride this coming October will help to create funds in order to get 2 worlds parks return to idora started. One important thing I need to stress is that volunteers will run the hayride and we need to start getting the volunteer signed up! Remember, by volunteering, you are helping bring back Idora Park! If you would be interested in volunteering, please contact myself or Carl to get signed up. The hayride will also feature other attractions such as food and maybe a ride or two. This has not yet been confirmed, but Carl is currently working with the owner of the original Idora Tilt-a-Whirl and Caterpillar ride to bring them to the event! If this happens, it means that we will be able to ride 2 original Idora rides this coming fall! This is not yet 100%, but Carl is working on it! If this does become a reality, we need to find 2 tents that will give cover to the rides. The tents can be borrowed, donated, or whatever, and need to be at least 75’ in diameter. capital generated will help our company to move forward with this project by fundimg the various studies that have to be completed to attract the various large equity investors.

If you or anyone you know may have or know someone who has tents available or you would like to volunteer at the hayride, please contact us ASAP!

This is the information that I have available so far, more information will be available as it is given to me. Watch the message boards for all the latest information as it becomes available!

7-8-03

We have confirmation of the location!

While doing some investigations in Milton Township - I happened to find the location of the future 2 worlds parks return to idora. Carl Severino has been in the planning stages for well over 3 years and reported that they have secured land in Milton TWP. Since I have contacts in the Jackson - Milton area, I started asking around... Right away I was told "yea, I saw the signs on 534" - After being directed to the location, here is what I found:

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Image 4

Image 5

As always, this does not yet guarentee that we will have our park back. Carl Severino and his group still have a lot of work to do... but the light at the end of the tunnel looks a lot better. Hopefully Carl can fill us in with more information on our message boards (click here)

I did do some work on mapquest to give the location to the visitors of my site:
(2 Worlds Park's future location is the blue circles, NOT RED STARS!)