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Updated: October 16, 2022 @ 1:20 pm
Pictured is Thunder Island, which is set to reopen by the end of June under new owners Shane and Gale LaBeef.
Pictured is Thunder Island, which is set to reopen by the end of June under new owners Shane and Gale LaBeef.
FULTON — Thunder Island, a popular water park in Fulton, is estimated to open soon under new owners Shane and Gale LaBeef.
Part of Thunder Island, located at 21 Wilcox Road off state Route 48, is estimated to open within the next couple of weeks, while the water park is estimated to open at the end of June, Gale LaBeef told The Palladium-Times.
“We’re hoping for the dry stuff within a week, week-and-a-half, we’re hoping,” LaBeef said. “That would be the putt-putt, the go-karts and the ice cream parlor. We’re just waiting on the permits and the insurances. Once those are in, we’re good.”
LaBeef stressed that while they’re hoping and planning to open in June, everything is dependent on permits, licenses and insurance. The Oasis banquet hall at Thunder Island is also anticipated to open at the end of June, however a liquor license will take six to eight weeks to obtain.
The new owners have been at Thunder Island every day working to get the park ready for the upcoming season, LaBeef said. They’ve done maintenance on many areas of the park, fixing things and installing new items, such as some arcade games in the store. All of the pools have been resealed, and they also finished the ice cream parlor and purchased new ice cream machines and coolers. The ice cream parlor is a stand alone, meaning that people can come to get ice cream even if they may not want to go to the water park or other dry areas of the park.
New additions are coming to the park this year, such as laser tag and “Splat Ball.”
“We’re adding laser tag, that will be out here in the field,” LaBeef said. “We’re adding what’s called ‘Splat Ball,’ that’s basically a family friendly version of paint ball. There’s no pain involved, it’s fun for all ages. I mean we’ve seen little kids go out and play it, so that will be out there. As far as more than that, that’s all we can do this year, but as revenue comes into the park, it’s all going back into the park. We will add more as time goes by.”
The laser tag and “Splat Ball” are included in the dry part of the park that is anticipated to open within the next couple of weeks. LaBeef said that they are having extended hours, with the ice cream parlor and dry area of the park closing at 8 p.m. and the water park closing at 7 p.m. during the summer.
As for the park’s season, LaBeef said that how long a season is revolves around when school lets out and is back in session, as many of the incoming employees are high school or college students. The water park can only be open for about two to three months, but the LaBeefs are planning on having the dry areas of the park open for a longer portion of the year. The Oasis banquet hall will be open year round.
One thing that will not be returning this year is the soaring eagle zip line, as repairs are needed. LaBeef hopes to have the repairs done next year, using this year’s proceeds toward it. However, most other things will remain the same, including this year’s pricing. LaBeef said that this year’s season will not have an increase in prices from last year’s.
The idea to purchase Thunder Island started out as a joke to the LaBeefs, who already own two other businesses. However, it quickly turned into a serious endeavor, according to LaBeef.
“It kind of just fell in our lap like it was meant to be,” LaBeef said. “My husband saw on Facebook or something that it was up for sale and we talked about it for a few days in a goof around kind of way. It was like ‘Yeah, we could do it,’ I mean because we have two other businesses, and ‘Yeah, we have time,” and there was just goofing around with the idea. And then I guess it was five or six days later, one morning we’re sitting there and we talked about it pretty serious. Like we were actually like, ‘You know what, maybe we should go take a look,’ because I think both of us kind of knew that we really wanted to dive in.”
On the same day that the LaBeefs decided to call a relator and schedule a viewing at Thunder Island, the realtor for the water park reached out to them first. According to LaBeef, the real estate agent told them that he had a business opportunity for them that he thought they would be interested in, and it was Thunder Island. The LaBeefs decided to take the chance and purchase Thunder Island, as they didn’t want to see it stay empty and become an abandoned park.
One of their favorite things about Thunder Island is how attractions are close enough together that families don’t have to walk long distances to enjoy the park, unlike some other water or amusement parks. Parents have the option of sitting down and enjoying themselves while still having a view of their children.
“We love it already and we’ve only been here a month,” LaBeef said. “We love the fact that it’s family friendly. …We love the fact that with Thunder Island, you can actually sit down, enjoy the sun and watch your kids do all of their running around.”
Moving forward with Thunder Island, LaBeef said that they are planning on expanding the dry area of the park, but that they don’t want to become huge. They’re also planning on giving the park a more modern upgrade over the next few years, and want to advertise the Oasis more so that more people are aware of the option to book the banquet hall for events. The Oasis is about 8,000 square feet and will be able to accommodate weddings, parties, company events and more.
LaBeef said that she and her husband are looking forward to the new season.
“We’re looking forward to people giving us a chance,” LaBeef said. “Be patient with us, it is a work in progress, and we do appreciate people nicely telling us any improvements we can make. … We do listen, we’re big on customer service. If we weren’t we wouldn’t be able to build our other businesses, but we do believe the customer has a huge say in what you should and shouldn’t do.”
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