SOUTH WHITEHALL TWP., Pa. — The proposed new roller coaster project at Dorney Park cleared another hurdle Tuesday by getting Lehigh Valley Planning Commission's unanimous approval.
- Plans for a new steel roller coaster at Dorney Park moved forward at a Lehigh Valley Planning Commission meeting
- At nearly 162 feet, the roller coaster would be the fourth-tallest ride in the park
- The yet-to-be-named roller coaster is expected to be operational in 2024
The acceptance comes on the heels of the South Whitehall Township Planning Commission’s recent unanimous recommended preliminary/final approval, with conditions, to township commissioners.
The planned nearly 162-foot-high steel coaster next faces review by township commissioners at their meeting at 7 p.m. March 1.
The yet-to-be-named roller coaster will replace the former Stinger coaster and be constructed on 2.7 acres, due north of Dorney Park Road and Lincoln Avenue.
Plans are for the new ride to be operational in 2024, according to Dorney’s public relations and communications manager, Ryan Eldredge.
Potential noise pollution caused by the coaster was reviewed and deemed not to be a concern.
Lehigh Valley Planning Commission’s planning committee said that although the planned coaster will be in the 100-year floodplain, as determined by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the facility would not operate during adverse seasonal weather conditions and would not create a conflict.
Potential noise pollution caused by the coaster was reviewed and deemed not to be a concern.
The new coaster would be the fourth-tallest ride at Dorney, behind Steel Force (205 feet), Dominator (200 feet), and Possessed (185 feet), which is adjacent to the site of the proposed new coaster.
In other business on Tuesday, the Comprehensive Planning Committee unanimously approved a zoning amendment to reduce the minimum lot area required for apartments in Fountain Hill's Town Center district from 2,400-square-feet to 1,150-square-feet.
According to LVPC Senior Community Planner Jillian Seitz, the area already has many townhouses in many neighborhoods and “many of those are already at 1,150.”
The Dorney Park roller coaster project and the Fountain Hill rezoning issue will be reviewed again at a meeting of the full Lehigh Valley Planning Commission at 7 p.m. Thursday.
The respective municipalities will get the commission’s recommendations.
Zoning changes in sections of Route 412 South of Hellertown Borough and Route 378 from Mountain Drive to Upper Saucon Township, and Easton Road South of Bethlehem were also reviewed by the committee. The rezoning is intended to stimulate commercial growth.
A motion was approved to eliminate the current General Business district and limited district, resulting in one commercial business district. The new business district would allow for a wider range of businesses such as banks, car washes, gas stations, and community centers and libraries, and lodging and restaurants, the planning commission said.
Staff writer Olivia Marble contributed to this report.
