Fun Spot America, Gatorland push to reopen during phase 2

Other attractions around Central Florida have begun partially reopening

ORLANDO, Fla. – It’s been almost two months since Gatorland Orlando closed its doors due to the pandemic.

Now with the news of Universal's CityWalk and Disney Springs partially reopening, workers say they are ready to reopen whenever they get the green light.

MORE: Here’s what the Florida Department of Health found before Universal CityWalk’s reopening

“Our CEO put a deadline on all of our departments to be ready to go by May 9th we added over 50 handwash stations there’s a brand new 32-page protocol document dealing how we interact with our guests,” Mike Hileman with Gatorland Orlando said.

Gatorland Orlando, along with other local attractions like Fun Spot America and Icon Park submitted letters to Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings asking to be included in phase two of the governor's reopening plan.

The letters include CDC guidelines for visitors and procedure manuals.

Employees at Gatorland Orlando have safety measures already set up throughout the park-like 6 feet place holders on the ground and signs with new restrictions for guests.

“The fact that we are open-air I think that changes the ball game for us you know. There’s smaller attractions and zoos like us that are starting to open up across the state we are just waiting for our turn,” Hileman said.

Fun Spot America sent News 6 a statement on Thursday that reads:

“We are all in this together and everyone has an important role to play, Fun Spot America continues to do their part with a legacy of providing Safe, Clean, Fun for over 22 years and now even more with the addition of new staff positions working in Clean Teams to strictly focus on wiping down all railing, surfaces and high touch areas regularly; hand sanitizer stations located throughout the park will remind guests to do their part, outdoor seating reconfigured to be at a minimum of 6 feet apart, our queue lines will be 9 feet apart from each other," John Chidester Vice President of Marketing said. "We will also operate with alternate seating on Roller Coasters, Go-Karts, Family, Thrill and Kiddie rides. Our Arcade, Diners and any other indoor attractions will be closed.”

Temperature checks for staff prior to their shift. (Those with temperatures over 100.4 will not be allowed to enter premises.)

“We believe initially we will be operating at lower capacity levels which have yet to be set, and there will be signage throughout the park to remind our guests to join us in practicing Safe, Clean, Fun,” Chidester added.

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About the Author:

Ezzy Castro is a multimedia journalist on News 6's morning team who has a passion for telling the stories of the people in the Central Florida community. Ezzy worked at WFOR CBS4 in South Florida and KBMT in Beaumont, Texas, where she covered Hurricane Harvey in 2017. Being from Miami, Ezzy loves Cuban coffee and croquetas!

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