ExplorOcean expansion plan raises questions about Fun Zone’s future

Nearly a decade has passed since ExplorOcean bought a harbor-facing stretch of land dubbed the Balboa Fun Zone, exchanging the kitschy Scary Dark Ride and bumper cars for a learning center focused on science education.

The Fun Zone has operated in Newport Beach’s Balboa Village in some form for 66 years. Visitors often fondly recall their trips to the seaside carnival erected in the 1980s.

But as the area continues to transform to fit the vision of the new owner, longtime merchants and wistful residents wonder what’s in store for the Fun Zone, a place that some say isn’t fun anymore.

The question is asked both by preservationists and those seeking revitalization, but the answer is as hard to define as the charm of Balboa Village, made famous by ferry trips and picturesque views of the harbor.

The nonprofit ExplorOcean — formerly known as the Newport Harbor Nautical Museum — has been a key player in the transformation of the Balboa Fun Zone from a 1950s-style seaside theme park to an educational space that emphasizes science, technology, engineering and math.

ExplorOcean is the second-largest landowner in Balboa Village, behind the city.

“The Fun Zone is still here,” said ExplorOcean Chief Executive Tom Pollack. “It didn’t go anywhere. We’re making it better than it’s been in years.”

In 2005, ExplorOcean purchased nearly two acres in Balboa Village, including the learning center’s current building, the boardwalk and the marina. One by one, the nonprofit began removing the attractions that made up the carnival-style theme park.

In its place, ExplorOcean plans to build a complex that will feature a three-story Ocean Literacy Center with 4-D attractions, interactive exhibits and an ocean education curriculum to supplement marine studies in school districts across California. The organization has launched a vigorous fundraising campaign to make its dream a reality by 2018.

Those backing revitalization of the area say the Fun Zone that people remember from the 1980s and early 1990s wasn’t working anymore. Families had stopped showing up, and it was time for a change, they say.

However, locals and merchants who have cherished memories of arcade games and carousel rides believe ExplorOcean’s expansion is more of a hostile takeover than a gradual changing of the guard.

“They said they were bringing fun back into the Fun Zone,” said Henk Wiessner, president of Fun Zone Boat Co. “But it just seems like a ghost town now.”

Still, it’s unclear when merchants occupying property that ExplorOcean bought may be asked to abandon their businesses to make room for the $105 million learning center, Wiessner said.

Opponents also have raised questions about ExplorOcean’s ability to finance and execute its plan, pointing to a loss in revenue in recent years.

However, that hasn’t halted the plan. Last month, ExplorOcean and the city took another step forward in their vision for a rebranded and revitalized Balboa Village.

The City Council unanimously approved an option to lease the Palm parking lot, which sits behind the one-story, 26,219-square-foot ExplorOcean building, to the nonprofit for the next 50 years with the idea that the organization would eventually build a 386-space parking structure on the lot.

Preservationists lament that all that’s left of the old nostalgia are the Balboa Bar ice cream treats, the iconic Ferris wheel, which sits in its original location overlooking the harbor, and the vintage arcade.

The Scary Dark Ride is now administrative offices, the bumper car area is now a small version of the planned Ocean Literacy Center, and the carousel that once spun on the patio area has been replaced by picnic tables to accommodate a nearby barbecue restaurant.

Fun Zone Entertainment, a subsidiary of ExplorOcean, operates three attractions on the boardwalk, including a mechanical bull shark ride, a water slide called Fish Pipe and a bungee trampoline dubbed Ocean Motion.

Bruce Voss, a longtime Newport Beach resident and a lawyer for Fun Zone Boat Co., recalls taking his children and grandchildren to the harbor in the carnival’s heyday. Now, he said, it’s a sad reminder of what he and his friends were unable to save.

“It’s just not the same,” he said.

Inside ExplorOcean

Though ExplorOcean is still raising funds to build the new educational center, it currently provides a variety of learning opportunities for students. Visitors can stop at lab-style stations, each teaching something different about the ocean — from the activities of plankton to underwater robotics.

ExplorOcean also hosts field trips for students from throughout Orange County, first at the facility and then out on the bay to show them the real-world application of what they’re learning in the classroom, said education director Wendy Marshall.

More than 70,000 elementary, middle school and high school students participate in programs at ExplorOcean, according to the organization’s website.

“We’re trying to get kids who have maybe never been to the ocean excited about learning,” Marshall said. “The bay is truly the ultimate classroom.”

ExplorOcean is trying to raise money to buy a $185,000, 49-passenger pontoon vessel to provide more opportunities for field trips. The twin-hulled boat would take students to the Newport Back Bay estuary and the California Institute of Technology’s William G. Kerckhoff Marine Laboratory in Corona del Mar. It also would be used as a floating laboratory for science lessons.

Parking plans

However, expansion couldn’t be accomplished without ample parking for guests, Pollack said.

ExplorOcean first approached the city more than two years ago with a plan for an onsite parking structure. After much negotiation, city staff drafted an agreement that would give ExplorOcean leasing rights to the city-owned Palm lot at Washington Street and East Balboa Boulevard when the organization raises enough money to build a parking structure.

The council approved the agreement Nov. 25.

The city purchased the land for $3.5 million in 2010 to provide a parking lot to support the revitalization of Balboa Village. Today, the lot provides 68 metered spaces. There are 13 on-street parking spots adjacent to the lot.

ExplorOcean will make a one-time payment of $2,500 to the city for the option to lease the space. If the option is executed, ExplorOcean will pay the city at least $190,500 annually for 50 years and will have full control of the lot and the proposed structure.

“This may or may not benefit the other Balboa merchants and their customers,” Voss said. “They can freeze out any other competition.”

With the Palm lot and the existing 55-space underground lot, ExplorOcean would have enough parking to accommodate its visitors, Pollack said. ExplorOcean has served about 70,000 people this year; the number of visitors in previous years was unavailable.

The idea that a parking structure may be on the horizon sends the right message to investors looking to put money into the new complex, Pollack said.

“It opens up larger sums of money to be realized for the project,” he said. “It’s a linchpin to the project and the best option for the city, residents and the merchants in the Balboa Village.”

The City Council and the California Coastal Commission would have to sign off on the parking structure.

Financial worries

Some merchants wonder how ExplorOcean plans to fund the structure. Tax forms submitted by the organization show losses in revenue in 2010 through 2012. Tax information for 2013 is not yet available.

In 2009, the organization showed $2.4 million in income and about $1.7 million in expenses.

But in the years that followed, ExplorOcean spent more money than it brought in and dipped into its reserves to fund its budget, according to tax forms. In 2012, the organization spent $1.4 million more than its income.

Pollack attributes the increase in spending to hiring designers and architectural firms to draft documents for ExplorOcean’s learning complex.

“It’s not about spending money,” he said. “It’s about making an investment in the future.”

The organization’s tax forms also show a decline in fundraising from 2010 to 2012.

But Pollack points to assets such as ExplorOcean’s land holdings in Balboa Village as a sign of financial health.

“You can’t be an underdog sitting in a $14 million building,” he said.