News Story Details Transition of Cedar Fair CEO Position + Other Tidbits

Cleveland.com published an interesting story this weekend about the transition of outgoing Cedar Fair CEO Matt Ouimet and incoming CEO Richard Zimmerman... profiling both to some degree and giving some interesting hints toward future projects.

First, the story answers one question that I had stuck in my mind:  Matt Ouimet will be returning to Southern California in the new year, and is not seeking another full time job.  He will still serve on the company's board, as announced, but it sounds like semi-retirement is his plan.

Also, the new CEO, Richard Zimmerman, will be based out of corporate offices in Charlotte, North Carolina, not at Cedar Point.

Mr. Ouimet's time at Cedar Fair is highlighted not only by record breaking seasons, but also in his quest to improve resort accommodations along with new business models, such as the Sports Force complex near Cedar Point.  He's especially proud of Hotel Breakers' transformation, along with the recent redevelopment of Cedar Point Shores.

© Google Maps

The article also notes that at Cedar Point in 2018 there will be an "expanded beach boardwalk that will link the park's main parking lot to the beach, Hotel Breakers and Cedar Point Shores."  Currently the boardwalk ends at the bottom of Hotel Breakers, the yellow rectangle at the top of the image.  In order to connect that to the main parking lot a new boardwalk would have to go up along the yellow dots, down to where the lot starts at the bottom of the image.

That's an interesting move as it will let guests park in the main lot even if they only want to go to Cedar Point Shores... but that's quite a walk in your flip flops!

Coming in just a couple months will be the first WinterFest at Kings Island, Worlds of Fun and Carowinds - but it says that it will also open at Canada's Wonderland in late 2018.  They're still trying to figure out how to do it at Cedar Point, it says.

Make sure to check out the full story for even more details.