SANDUSKY, Ohio — For one reason or another, Cedar Point has made a lot of headlines these past few years: Whether it's the parent company, Cedar Fair, merging with Six Flags last year, or new ride malfunctions.
But what does the future of the park look like here in Northeast Ohio?
"There is some consternation and concern in the marketplace right now," Dennis Speigel, who consults globally on the theme park industry at International Theme Park Services, Inc., said.
Earlier this year, Six Flags announced plans to cut staffing company-wide by 10%.
"Cedar Fair merging with Six Flags was intended to lift the Six Flags company up but I think what's happened is that’s dragged the Cedar Fair company down to the issues they’re having today," Speigel added.
"The staffing model today is very different than it was five or six years ago because the cost of labor is so much higher," Six Flags CFO Brian Witherow said during an earnings call on Aug. 6. "So we staff our parks at more of a base level and then increase staffing as needed and as might be available."
Beyond staffing cuts, the Six Flags property in Maryland is set to close in November, and so will its California park in 2027.
Former Cedar Point employees share concerns over staffing levels, morale, compensation
It started as a dream for Damien Blanchard: He started working at Cedar Point five summers ago. But after working all over the park in a variety of roles, he told News 5 his smile that greeted parkgoers faded away.
"It was just not staffed like it was supposed to be," he said. "Rides were in a very long wait because they didn’t have enough people to be running those rides."
Changes bleeding into the customer experience, a strain that staffers have been telling News 5 for months.
"Go work 12 hours, six days a week, it’s a lot," former employee Joey Davis added in an interview to News 5 last month.
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Take a look at Cedar Point’s annual job fair.
News releases sent to News 5 show that in 2022, the starting wage was $15/hour. In 2023, the starting wage shifted to $14-$17/hour. In 2024, it dropped $1 to $13-$17/hour. This past spring, hourly pay ranges posted in their releases showed a starting wage from $13 to $15/hour.
That’s a starting wage drop of $2/hour in three years, when inflation went up 10% over that same period, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
That drop tied to company-wide layoffs made a difference, according to Blanchard.
"I started finding out more and more people I knew that I talked to here and there were let go," he said.
This past summer, Blanchard told News 5 he was fired from the park. He now works at another tourism destination, but still hopes for the best for America’s Rockin' Roller Coast.
"We’re trying to make sure.... I'm not there anymore, so I can’t say 'we,' but I feel like its employees are trying its best to make sure everybody has a great experience and give it the old touch of what Cedar Point used to be," Blanchard said.
So what does this all mean for Cedar Point?
"We’re a mature industry," Speigel said. "Things have changed: pricing, season passes, aging demographics — all of those have changed. Those need to be addressed and looked at differently in the future."
Beyond the complaints and concerns, Speigel told News 5 that Cedar Point was once the crown jewel for Cedar Fair. And it should still be treated as such with Six Flags.
"Cedar Point will be here," Speigel said. "It just needs a reorganization of management to bring it further into the 21st century and operate the proper way."
On Friday afternoon, Six Flags released new numbers, including a 2% increase in attendance at all their parks during the months of July and August, when compared to the same nine-week stretch last year 2024.
However, revenue for the entire company was down 2% over that same time period when compared to 2024.
News 5 asked a spokesperson at Cedar Point and its parent company, Six Flags, if they wanted to participate on camera for this story. A spokesperson at Six Flags said, "We do not comment on speculation."
Cedar Point is set to close for its 2025 season on Sunday, Nov. 2.
