Magic Mountain, Glenelg

Magic Mountain was a theme park in Glenelg, a beachside suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. It opened in December 1982 and finally closed on July 18 2004. It was demolished late in 2004 as part of the final stage of the Holdfast Shores development. It had been popular among the young and "young at heart", but had also been criticised for its design, which was likened to a "giant dog dropping". [1] It has been replaced with The Beachouse, which finished construction early in 2006. There was a fair bit of anger (especially among younger people) at the time of Magic Mountain's demolition, but that seemed to die down with the announcement of The Beachouse.

"Glory Days"

Magic Mountain's "glory days" were around the turn of the century (2000) to its deconstruction (2006). It was popular more with locals than tourists, and especially with younger people. The main attraction of Magic Mountain was its four water slides, particularly during the hot Adelaide summer. Other attractions included the historic carousel (which has been preserved), mini-golf, bumper boats, dodgem cars and sky cycles.

Destruction

The South Australian Government announced around mid 2003 that Magic Mountain would be demolished to make way for the Holdfast Shores development. Local government (City of Holdfast Bay) opposition to the proposed beachfront high-rise apartments focused on Magic Mountain as the one parcel of land within the project that was under its control. [2] The compromise that was reached included the construction of The Beachouse, which opened on July 1 2006.