Bon Aire section and other exterior changes to Hotel Breakers

I'm no expert, but it seems to me the images of the park above are maybe not actual photographs. Or if they are, the photographer enhanced the photos with some medium to provide greater and sometimes inaccurate detail.

I have a collection of antique Cedar Point postcards and it's interesting to see how Hotel Breakers is depicted through the years. Some of the versions are a lot larger than what seems possible or practical, and I've always thought the artists/photographers employed license to make the hotel appear grander than what it really was.

And off subject, but here's something freaky-
I have two particular cards issued years apart depicting the hotel and they are the exact same shot. One, however, is original and free of embellishments. The other is "updated" and modernized with colorization and even a little glitter to glam things up. I bought the cards at different times from different vendors. Later, in examining the cards, I realized they were both written and mailed years apart from the same sender to the same family in Willard, Oh. You could've knocked me over with a feather. What are the odds of that?
Btw, the sender in both cases spent time writing about what an awful time they were having...

Was there ever any thought that they were going to build more towers like the first one? Laying them out akin to the older orginal wings.

I have a collection of vintage Cedar Point postcards as well. I also have a pair of postcards that are the same photo, but one was colorized, only these are of a walkway.

Walt,

Thanks for posting those pics. They depict exactly what I was referring to- you can clearly see that the wing that is now the entrance corridor existed back then and was three stories.

I think Pete's point about the entrance having once been on beachside and the wing in question being modified to serve as an entrance corridor when automotive traffic came into play is most likely spot-on.

I'm still curious as to when and why the third story of what is now the entrance corridor was removed, and why the second story has been removed now.

I would be skeptical if there ever was three stories on that wing until I saw a real live photograph showing it. These 'photos' posted are artists representation of the hotel, yeah its close, but it isn't exact.

I don't think it was 3 stories. And there are photos of the initial demo work that seem to back that up. If you look at the live camera now you can see how the confusion comes about though, as the foundation level is rather elevated above the ground. The roof space was also considerable. Makes everything seem "tall."

They aren't rebuilding it. That is the ceiling work going into place. The outside wall on the lobby section might be access to the attic space/crawl space that might remain, but that isn't a second story being rebuilt. Remember the roof will pitch up and inward, maybe half the previous height overall.

And pre-construction computer renders are good but the perspective can be deceptive.

topthrilldragster4lyf said:
Why does it look like they're rebuilding the second floor they tore down previously on the parking lot/vehicle entrance? They've built what looks like one side wall with window openings. In the rendering, it's only one floor there.

Not sure what rendering you are looking at but this one shows a 2nd floor with windows. So what you are seeing on the webcam right now is correct to the rendering. Hopefully they are turning the 2nd floor into offices and other support for the hotel. They could definitely use it there.

Rotunda sure looks wierd from that angle. Almost like they added onto it between the lobby and rotunda itself.

~Rob

I think that is where they will add onto the Rotunda for the elevators, if you look at the Rotunda roof in the rendering above there are 2 square structures on either side of the roof closest to the new entrance. Those would be enclosing the tops of the elevator shafts that will serve that area.

Today on the webcam you can clearly see that they are framing a second story.

I really enjoy seeing the progress on Hotel Breakers! As I'm not in construction, does the progress seem to be on pace? I'm truly very curious, as the weather has been mostly favourable up to this point.

I'm sure it is on pace, unless something unexpected was found during the dismantling process. Seems like the framing is going very well and they still have over 4 months to complete the project. They are probably hard at work remodeling all of the rooms in the tower and east as well. Depending on the temperature specs of the outside finish product, they may hold off on that until spring. But that is probably in the plan if that process needs warmer temperatures.

The interior renovation will be complete by May, while the exterior alterations and new pool area may still be finishing up. Overall, the hotel will be functional for guests. I can't wait to walk through Breakers when everything is complete, this was long overdue and the new leadership of this park and company is taking a stride in the right direction!

Interesting that no demolition appears to have commenced at Bon-Air. I wonder if they might have decided to keep the structure for some other purpose instead of tearing it down- especially since it had recent renovations. it might make good office, storage, or employee housing space until the land is ready to be redeveloped.

You know, that is a good thought. Keep Bon Air around until new employee housing can be built if they remove Cedars. Of course, they did announce that Bon Air is being razed as recently as an end of Sept. in an article in the Cleveland Plain Dealer (article link). They probably will hold off demolition until early spring, it won't take very long to demolish that section. But your plan makes sense if they need more employee housing, so I guess we'll see what happens!

Might they be using it as a construction field office?

Even more recently, Tony stated at the GOCC Holiday party on December 13th that it would be coming down. Likely around February.

This will probably sound stupid, but is Bon Aire the section closest to Soak City?

Yes.