By GREGORY ZELLER //
A Long Island entertainment destination that’s defined summer for generations is embarking on a new adventure.
East Farmingdale-based Adventureland has announced a five-year, $10 million redevelopment plan, complete with new rides, state-of-the-art concessions stands and expanded employment opportunities, all bolstered by a new partnership with Catholic Health.
The Rockville Centre-based health system (formerly Catholic Health Services of Long Island) is now sponsoring the park’s main entrance and City Hall Building. Renamed the Catholic Health Wellness Center, the building includes the park’s guest-relations and first-aid facilities, with a handy blue line painted throughout the park leading guests straight to the former City Hall.
The redevelopment doesn’t stop there. Ground has been broken on “Legacy Corner,” an acre-plus plot at the park’s southeast corner, with new concessions, restrooms and other amenities expected to be completed by 2028.
And of course, the multiyear expansion includes the introduction of several new rides, beginning during the now-underway 2024 season with “Junior Pirate Ship” (located in the park’s Kiddieland section) and “Moon Chaser” (a 45-foot spinaroonie for older riders, described as a “galaxy-themed thrill ride which spins, twists, dips and inverts riders”) both ready for action.
Cut to cure: (From left) Adventureland Manager Paul Gentile, Catholic Health Executive Vice President Joseph Lamantia, Catholic Health Senior Vice President Joe Carofano and Adventureland Operations Manager Steven Gentile cut the ceremonial ribbon on the amusement park’s new Catholic Health Wellness Center.
They’ll be followed by “Wave Twist,” a 60-foot-high, boomerang-shaped coaster designed to “simulate the motion and feel of riding on ocean waves,” according to Adventureland. Built in Switzerland by international amusement park manufacturer Ride Engineers Switzerland, the family-friendly ride is expected to make its U.S. debut on Long Island in Spring 2025.
“At least two more planned rides” will be introduced over subsequent expansion phases, the amusement park said in a statement.
To make room for the new rides and other incoming amenities, Adventureland is “retiring” several older attractions, including “Pirate Ship” and “Spinning Cars,” which both date back to the late 1980s.
“Older rides need more maintenance and become difficult to repair over time,” noted Park Manager Caitlin DiSclafani. “And finding replacement parts becomes increasingly difficult as the parts are no longer being made.”
Also on the chopping block is Adventureland’s massive – and massively popular – “Log Flume,” which not only took up a full 10 percent of the park’s overall space but only operated in warmer weather between May and September. The newer rides are expected to run throughout the park’s annual March-November schedule.
Patrick O’Shaughnessy: Making memories.
All told, the $10 million growth plan marks the largest Adventureland expansion since the 2015 installation of the $5 million “Turbulence” rollercoaster – still the park’s headline attraction – and clearly “add(s) value to the park and to the guests’ experience,” according to DiSclafani.
“We saw an opportunity to improve and enhance the guest experience,” the park manager added. “We’re excited to leave a lasting legacy in the park for generations to come.”
Adventureland, which already hires roughly 650 part-time employees each operating season, estimates a 10 percent increase in its employment rolls by the end of the fifth expansion phase in 2028.
It also expects to host several wellness-themed educational programs during the 2024 season, in league with its new primary sponsor.
Catholic Health President and CEO Patrick O’Shaughnessy said his health system – which includes six acute-care hospitals, three nursing homes, a home-health service, hospice services and a comprehensive network of physician practices, with some 16,000 employees in all – is “pleased to serve as lead sponsor for … Long Island’s favorite amusement park.”
“With deep roots in Long Island and an ongoing history of partnering with the communities it serves, we’re thrilled to do our part to ensure that the communities of Long Island will always have opportunities to make lasting memories in a family-friendly environment,” O’Shaughnessy added in a statement. “Adventureland is all about bringing families and friends together, and so is Catholic Health.”
