Boardwalk and Baseball

Boardwalk and Baseball was a theme park built near Haines City, Florida, on the east corner of the intersection of US 27 and Interstate 4. It replaced Circus World at the same location, and was owned by Harcourt Brace Jovanovich (now Harcourt, a division of Reed Elsevier). It opened on February 14, 1987, and closed January 17, 1990.

Contents

• Boardwalk and baseball super bowl of sports trivia 1989 clip
• Boardwalk and baseball theme park florida from 1989
• Decline and closure
• References

The park recycled many of Circus World's rides and exhibits. The petting zoos were removed, the rides and shows were rethemed, and Baseball City Stadium was built on the site. There were several exhibits that borrowed artifacts from the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. HBJ attracted the Kansas City Royals from Fort Myers, Florida, to make Baseball City Stadium their new spring training home and the site of their Class A Florida State League affiliate, the Baseball City Royals. They also had a Rookie-level affiliate in the Gulf Coast League, one of two lowest level minor leagues in the U.S. (along with the Arizona League).

In addition, ESPN taped a quiz bowl-style game show, Boardwalk and Baseball's Super Bowl of Sports Trivia, on the site. It aired in 1988 and 1989 and featured single-elimination tournaments of three-person teams representing U.S. colleges and universities. Chris Berman was the host. Washington State University won the 1988 tournament.

Although the park was considered superior to its predecessor, it was predicted to fail by industry observers at the grand opening. Its relatively standard rides were considered no match as a Disney World competitor. Industry observers were proved correct, as the project was quickly falling into financial ruins within 18 months of its grand opening, at which point, employee layoffs and reduced hours were used to try to cut costs. To further limit expenses, the park closed before sunset for almost the entire year, rendering its antique style gas lighting (that cost over $1 million to install) useless.