A Beloved Park Left to the Elements
For 30 years, Upper Clements Park was the kind of place Nova Scotian families built summer memories around — roller coasters, waterslides, and the particular joy of a regional amusement park that didn't require a cross-country flight to enjoy. Then in 2019, the gates closed for good, and the 40-acre property in the Annapolis Valley fell silent.
Now, six years later, the Municipality of the County of Annapolis is making another push to find someone willing to take the land off its hands and do something meaningful with it.
What's Still Standing
A recent visit to the site reveals a park frozen in time — and not in the charming way. Ride structures sit rusting in the open air. The wooden roller coaster, once a regional landmark, is weathered but still upright. Nature has started reclaiming pathways and green spaces, and the general atmosphere is one of slow, inevitable decay.
It's the kind of scene that draws urban explorers and nostalgia-seekers, but it's also a liability the municipality has been carrying for years. Maintenance, security, and holding costs don't stop just because a park does.
The Call for Developers
The Municipality of the County of Annapolis has issued an upcoming request for development proposals — a formal invitation for investors and developers to pitch their vision for the property.
What exactly that vision might look like is deliberately left open. The municipality hasn't prescribed a specific use, which gives potential bidders flexibility to propose everything from a new recreational facility to housing, hospitality, or a mixed-use development.
The site's location in the Annapolis Valley gives it some natural advantages: it's scenic, accessible, and sits in a part of Nova Scotia that has seen renewed interest from both tourism and remote workers relocating from larger cities.
Why These Projects Are Hard
Abandoned amusement parks are notoriously difficult to redevelop. The infrastructure left behind — old ride footings, utility systems, aging structures — often costs more to demolish than to build new. Environmental assessments add time and expense. And the sentimental value locals attach to these places can make any proposed new use feel like a betrayal, no matter how sensible it might be on paper.
Upper Clements isn't the first Canadian park to face this kind of limbo, and it probably won't be the last. Marineland in Ontario has faced years of controversy. Ontario Place in Toronto spent over a decade in various states of partial use before its own contentious redevelopment began.
What Comes Next
The municipality is hoping this round of outreach finally lands a serious developer. Whether the final proposal preserves any of the park's recreational character or wipes the slate entirely remains to be seen.
For now, the old roller coaster keeps standing — weathered, a little surreal, and waiting.
Source: CBC News. Read the original story at cbc.ca.
