Walibi Belgium vs. 'The Locals': episode 9857!

[KristofWB]

Let's go back to the year 1975, July 26th. Walibi Belgium opens it doors. Located in Bierges, a small little village in Walloon-Brabant, close to a quarter with locals. Never any problems, locals accepted the opening of a themepark next to their actual doors. Relationship between the park and its locals was fine.

But in 1982, Walibi Waver opened one of the most thrilling rollercoasters in Europe. The very first European launch coaster: Sirocco, nowadays known as Psyké Underground. The rollercoaster is located a couple of meters from the back garden of some locals. Not any big problem, untill at one point complaints began about the noise this rollercoaster makes. Locals also said the music that is played in the park is to loud. Walibi Wavre, friendly as they are remove music installations from the back-side of the park, located close to the locals. Locals declare somekind of war to -at those days - one of the most anticipated amusement parks in Europe.

Ever since, the relation between the locals and the park is troubled. The complains about the horror-coaster Sirocco went on and on. To show their worries about the locals rest, Walibi Wavre decided to built a building around the rollercoaster to reduice noise. Yet, complaints never stopped.

Years later, Walibi Belgium has done several things to show their concerns about the locals living near the park. Some of the things the park has done to make it them more comfortable:

* Reduce late night openings from 10 PM till 9 PM, later on to 8 PM
* Reduce the number of late night openings from 5 to 2.
* Cancel the Halloween late night openings.
* Cut down opening hours from rides close to the side of the locals (Turbine and Bounty, the Looping Ship).
* Closure of the Looping Ship.
* Huge costs by filling Cobra and Turbine supports with sand and place special wheels on both rides.
* Opening a hotline where locals can leave their complaints.
* Building a huge soundwall behind Salsa Y Fiesta.
* Re-building the amphitheatre partially to reduice noise from shows.
* Cut down the number of decibels that are allowed before 6 PM and after 6 PM
* The park is now forbidden to build any kind of new rides at the left side of the lake.
* It is forbidden for the park to have any rides in bright and flashy colors.

After their years of fighting for the permanent closure of Turbine, the locals of Walibi Belgium were furious when they found out Walibi Belgium was about to re-open the legendary Schwarzkopf Shuttle Loop. But after a battle of more than 30 years, locals have won and the rollercoaster opened as Psyké Underground.

But a couple of days ago, a newspaper had an interview with the chairman of 'Les Versants de la Dyle', which also has the angry locals from Walibi Belgium as part of their members. They see the inclosed Turbine as somekind of victory for their year long battle.

The locals are now back with another battle they hope to win. This time, another ride of the park is the object of their battle: Cobra. The locals want this rollercoaster now to be or closed for good, want it to be built indoor like Psyké Underground or a re-location to the former Tornado/Vertigo area.

I'm really curious how this new episode 'Walibi vs. locals' is about to end!

 

[peep]

I was hoping you'd post about this as I couldn't make much sense from Google translate lol.

The locals sound really burdenous. Surely at this point all the locals have moved in to their homes since the park was there? If that's the case I don't think they should get what they want, they knew what they were getting in to.

Also if these were such big problems in the first place why were they even granted planning permission? I think that's the bit I don't understand.

 

[KristofWB]

The locals sound really burdenous. Surely at this point all the locals have moved in to their homes since the park was there? If that's the case I don't think they should get what they want, they knew what they were getting in to.
.

The funny thing is that many of the locals from Walibi Belgium did move into those houses when the park was already operating. However, there do live some people who used to live there before the park opened. Strange enough, these people are not the ones who complain.

Anyway, a new board from the 'we hate Walibi' locals is chosen, so I think the park should prepare for many more complaints to come.

 

[PeskyTrimBrake]

The locals sound really burdenous. Surely at this point all the locals have moved in to their homes since the park was there? If that's the case I don't think they should get what they want, they knew what they were getting in to.
.

The funny thing is that many of the locals from Walibi Belgium did move into those houses when the park was already operating. However, there do live some people who used to live there before the park opened. Strange enough, these people are not the ones who complain.

Anyway, a new board from the 'we hate Walibi' locals is chosen, so I think the park should prepare for many more complaints to come.

Move right next to a theme park they said. It'll be fun they said.

Walibi should know better not to be taken advantage of. Its the same thing with TV/Movie censorship when the viewers make a ridiculous petition to cancel/take down the TV show or movie just because they made a statement only 20 people thought it was uncalled for.

 

[KristofWB]

Walibi should know better not to be taken advantage of. Its the same thing with TV/Movie censorship when the viewers make a ridiculous petition to cancel/take down the TV show or movie just because they made a statement only 20 people thought it was uncalled for.

Well, that's the point. The fact they have to paint their rides in colors that blend the enviroment, the fact they have to keep the number of decibels in mind, the number of late night openings, the number of days they can have fireworks,...
This has all been summed up in some enviroment permit that was launched by the government. They can't say "We don't care about these old and cranky locals, we do what we want".
This permit has been released a year before Psyké Underground and will last till april 2030.

 

[Pierre]

Under what grounds are they wanting this closed, and why now? It's been open since 2001?

 

[_koppen]

However, there do live some people who used to live there before the park opened. Strange enough, these people are not the ones who complain.

Lol, this actually made me think of nuclear power resistance. People who live next to the plants usually don't mind it, but people who live away from it want it gone and raise hell about it.

 

[KristofWB]

Under what grounds are they wanting this closed, and why now? It's been open since 2001?

Which grounds? It is only for the noise Cobra makes. The air pressure when the train is released, the sound it makes when it rides over the track and the screaming of visitors.

The rollercoaster is there since 2001 and was actually some kind of 'emergency solution' for the park. Because Cobra, the classic Vekoma Boomerang was actually ment to be built at Warner Bros. Movie World Madrid as a Superman-themed rollercoaster. Stuntfall, the GIB in Parque Warner Madrid, was ment to be built in Walibi Belgium. The installation of the GIB in Walibi Belgium was cancelled mainly because the ride was a little to big to fit the room and the park had to expand at the parkinglot. The other reason it was cancelled because locals found it to be too big and to high to be installed close at their properties.

And why now? Because after a struggle for over 30 years, they finally got what they wanted: former Turbine enclosed. And now they think they can win this case too and the ride will be or removed or replaced.

At the other hand, rumors started saying that the park is actually planning to relocate the rollercoaster to the former Tornado/Vertigo site. Mainly because of the problems they still have with the foundations of the ride after the flooding in November 2011. This means they have the chance to integrate Cobra into the WAB-zone of the park and give it another look such as they did with La Via Volta (Speed of Sound) in Walibi Holland and they can expand or Aqualibi, Walibi's waterpark, or they can plan to expand the Ali Baba building next to Cobra and install a dark-ride/indoorcoaster in this 1985 former dark ride.