On January 29, Busch Gardens Williamsburg’s social media channels posted a message that said “There’s something going on in our engineering department. Stay tuned…” with a link to the following video, featuring Busch Gardens Vice President of Marketing, Dan Dipiazzo.
The video ends with a mention of “Project 2017,” and a link to the Project 2017 Landing Page. Obviously, with more than 6 weeks until the opening day for Busch Gardens Williamsburg’s 2016 season, to start teasing for 2017 already indicates the possibility of something BIG on the horizon coming to Busch Gardens Williamsburg.
The tease videos (the second released on February 3) seemed pretty straight forward, but I wanted a second opinion, so I consulted Cody Green and Matt Conkle from BGCabana to see if I was missing anything after looking at the videos, and to see what they feel is coming to Busch Gardens in 2017.
C101: For our readers who may not be familiar with BGCabana.com, tell us about yourselves.
BGCabana: We started as a few friends who found a common passion for Busch Gardens and started a Facebook page. Soon after, we decided to start our own site in May 2014, centered around information and family friendly entertainment with a focus on positivity and fun. We wanted a place for season pass holders, casual park goers and people just looking for a family get away could feel comfortable. We have established a relationship with Busch Gardens and a reputation amongst park goers, and we try our hardest to provide the best information possible to keep our accountability.
C101: What do you guys see in the first tease video?
BGCabana: Dan Dipiazzo and his team enjoy placing Easter eggs in the videos they put out. We noticed right away that there was a hammer on the table and that Larry Giles, vice president of engineering, was talking about clear out and area and a drop going “Right here”.
We speculate that they are discussing a coaster. A hammer could be a sign of a wooden coaster or just there to represent a tool of the trade. The background of the video had a grey wood grain background, this could also be a sign of a wooden coaster, but also could represent the crates that parts come in. We believe there is a coaster coming in 2017, but we are unsure whether the “leaks” released by the park are more of a distraction than what is really going on.
C101: A second video was released earlier this week featuring Dipiazzo and his “spy glasses.” Anything of note you guys noticed there?
BGCabana: In this video we get a look at the “site plans” cover sheet. This is obviously not a real cover sheet, because it says things like “Site details showing amazing attraction”. Dan tells us he is going to leak the plans, and was true to his word. The question is, does Dan have the right plans?
C101: Was there anything special you noticed about the plans?
BGCabana: Let me start by saying these are just site plans, not construction blueprints for buildings or rides. What they do show is three buildings that are to be placed in New France near Le Scoot Log Flume. There is what could be a clearing for a coaster track, but many of the plans are blurry when you zoom in, obviously done on purpose. We have been told of renovations happening in the New France area, including some theme additions to Le Scoot and work being done on the reservoir area below the ride, however, these plans do not seem to be for that.
C101: Based on what we’ve seen so far, what do you think is happening at Busch Gardens Williamsburg in 2017?
BGCabana: In summation, do we believe there is a coaster coming in 2017? Yes. Are we certain that coaster is going in New France? No. All we can really say right now is that we are excited for a new addition to the park and we are really enjoying what the marketing department is doing with Project 2017. The direction they are going in keeps people guessing what is coming next through bits of information as opposed to just remaining silent.
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In a series of posts on their website, BGCabana goes into further detail about the three new buildings in the New France Area.
From their post on February 3:
BUILDING #1: This is a 1,107 sq ft building that is 23′ tall. It’s building classification is type “U”. The “U” classification is as follows: “Utility and Miscellaneous (Group U) – others. Examples: water towers, barns, towers”. We do not know what this building will be used for. We’re thinking that maybe they are expanding into a picnic area of some sort….maybe covered tables?
BUILDING #2: This is an 840 sq ft building that is 23′ tall. It’s building classification is type “A-3”. The A-3 classification is: “A-3 Buildings intended for worship, recreation or amusement and other assembly uses not otherwise classified”. We do not know what this building will be used for either. It’s obviously some sort of compliment to the other structure, but honestly we have no clue.
BUILDING #3: This is a 174 sq ft building that is 11′ tall. It’s building classification is “B”. The B classification is: “Business (Group B) – places where services are provided (not to be confused with mercantile, below). Examples: banks, insurance agencies, government buildings (including police and fire stations), and doctor’s offices.”.
This building is tricky, after looking over the plans, no where have we found anything pointing to this building. BUT we think it may be a replacement building for the “Wild Moose Lodge”. We have been told in the past that this was some sort of office and we know it needs to be replaced. Also based on the plans, it’s the only other structure that is outlined in black, all other existing structures are greyed out. This is an absolute guess, but we think it’s a very good one.
In a follow-up post on February 4, BGCabana, with the help of one of their readers, pieced together some more of the plans with a map of Busch Gardens to determine a possible path for a new coaster, if one was to be built.
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It’s going to be a very interesting few months as Busch Gardens Williamsburg slowly reveals more and more details about their 2017 project. For more information, be sure to visit the official Project 2017 Website, as well as here on Coaster101. (For a more localized look at the project, be sure to check out BGCabana as well!)
What do you think Busch Gardens Williamsburg will be adding in 2017? Let us know in the comments below!
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