Before we get to today’s new information, we should recap a bit to make sure everyone is caught up on what has been happening with Kings Dominion’s long-rumored Project 2021.

Early last November we leaked an internal draft proposal depicting the layout for a possible Bolliger & Mabillard Wing coaster on the Volcano site. In the months since then, we have heard one rumor pretty consistently: Kings Dominion (or, I guess, Cedar Fair) ultimately opted to pass on that pitch. That decision seems to have been made in conjunction with the decision to remove Crypt (another thing KDFans managed to leak out before Kings Dominion’s official announcement).

With a B&M Wing coaster apparently off the table for now, that seems to leave us pretty squarely in the dark regarding Kings Dominion’s next major attraction. Thankfully we have two things: Excellent sources and access to local government public records. Today’s post will mainly rely on the latter, but remember, much of what we share is also informed at least partially by the former.

Crypt Demolition Plans

Within the last couple days, Kings Dominion filed a new batch of site plans with Hanover County that depict the demolition of the park’s Huss Inverted Top Spin, The Crypt. It’s not news that the ride is coming down, but there’s still a fair bit to be gleaned from looking over these plans—particularly pertaining to just how much of the ride’s surroundings will be impacted.

First off, we have a site plan showing the current state of the site. In the image below, everything in bold is slated for removal.

The second document depicts the “finished” state of the Crypt demolition project. An image of that plan is included below.

As you can see in the image above, essentially every trace of The Crypt is doomed—the ride structure itself, its pool, its theming, its queue, its line area shelters—the whole nine yards. All of those items are being replaced with a simple graded slope—for the time being at least.

Since I know documents like the ones included above are difficult for many folks to decipher, below I’ve included a composite map highlighting the elements slated for removal.

“Future Ride Area”

Far and away the juiciest detail in today’s documents is a label over the previous Crypt ride area that earmarks the land as being a “Future Ride Area.” That label suggests to us that a concept is already in development that relates to how the land will be utilized.

There’s another hint in here that tells us that Kings Dominion probably already has a good grasp on what’s replacing The Crypt as well: The demolition of the attraction’s queue. Frankly, Crypt had one of the nicest queues in the park—it featured large, covered switchback areas tucked back behind greenery out of guest view with televisions and fans.

Given that the existing queue and shade structures could easily be reused if Crypt was being replaced with a similarly-sized flat ride, demoing them without a plan in place that precludes their reuse seems foolish. This is doubly true given that these structures are essencially invisible to guests in their current state. The only reason I can imagine for clearing this whole area is that Kings Dominion has a replacement lined up that requires their removal. Mark my words: I will be shocked if whatever ride replaces Crypt doesn’t utilize this land as part of its ride area.

Furthermore, all of this circumstantial evidence dovetails very nicely with the rumors we’ve heard regarding Kings Dominion’s 2021 project—namely that the former Volcano site will likely not be the focus of next year’s addition. Unfortunately, as things currently stand (and as RollyCoaster teased in the KD 2021 thread a few days ago), we may have to wait a little longer than previously expected for a true Volcano replacement project. In the meantime though, it’ll be fascinating to see what Kings Dominion has in store for Crypt’s site in the near future!

From this point on, we expect news regarding Kings Dominion’s Project 2021 to start flowing fairly steadily. To stay up to date regarding KD Project 2021 and all other things Kings Dominion, make sure you follow us on Twitter and Instagram and like KDFans.com on Facebook as well! Additionally, if you’d like to follow along with the community’s discussions regarding this upcoming attraction, consider joining us on the ParkFans forum as well!