Star City (amusement park)

Star City is a 35,000 m2 (380,000 sq ft) amusement park in Pasay, Philippines. It is located in the reclaimed area of the Cultural Center of the Philippines Complex, part of Bay City. The facility is owned by Star Parks Corporation, a subsidiary of Elizalde Holdings Corporation (the holding company of the FJE Group of Companies).[2]

Star City
The outer facade of the entrance building, pictured in 2017
LocationBarangay 1, Pasay, Philippines
Coordinates14.555957°N 120.985914°E / 14.555957; 120.985914 (Star City)
OwnerStar Parks Corporation
Opened1991 (1991)
ClosedOctober 2, 2019 (October 2, 2019) (temporary)
Operating seasonYear-round
Visitors per annum1.5 million
Attractions
Roller coasters4[1]
Websitestarcity.com.ph
StatusTemporarily closed

Star City was hit by a fire on October 2, 2019, causing major damage to the main building and forcing the park to close until at least October 2020. Prior to the fire, Star City had an annual attendance of about 1.5 million people.[3] Star City had more than 30 different rides and attractions at the time of the fire, many of which were indoors.

History

The park was established in 1991 as an offshoot of the annual Toys and Gift Fair, a Christmas trade exhibition by the Philippine Center for International Trade and Exhibit (PhilCite), which was first organized in 1976. In the 1990s under Fred Elizalde, the fair evolved into an amusement park later named Star City.[3] The former PhilCite building upon which the park was based upon was pulled down in the late 1990s to make way for the park's indoor rides.

2019 fire
Main article: Star City fire

Star City was hit by a major fire on October 2, 2019, which destroyed about 80 percent of the main Star City building, which housed over 30 rides and attractions.[4] At least 25 of those were damaged in the fire, including Gabi ng Lagim, Dungeon of Terror, Bump Car Smash, and Snow World. The outdoor area, which includes the Star Flyer roller coaster and Star Frisbee, was mostly spared by the fire. Initial damage estimates ranged from 15 million to 1 billion Philippine pesos.[5]

Attractions
An attraction in Star City, prior to the 2019 fire.

Prior to the 2019 fire, 70 percent of the facilities of Star City were covered and air-conditioned. The amusement park introduced various types of rides and attractions in the Philippines. It hosted the double-deck carousel, 360-degree-loop roller coaster (the Zyklon Loop), and water log ride (the Jungle Splash) in the country. It hosted Snow World, the largest permanent ice entertainment area in the country, which featured ice carvings, a snow play area and the country's longest ice slide.[3] Another attraction in the amusement park is the inverted roller coaster Star Flyer.

Star City hosts the Giant Star Wheel Ferris wheel. It has 32 air-conditioned gondolas, each seating up to six persons. In 2012 it was said to be the tallest Ferris wheel in the Philippines.[6][7][8] Conflicting reports credit it with a height of 60 m (197 ft)[6][7] and 62.5 m (205 ft) tall.[8]

Within the amusement park complex are the Aliw and Star Theaters, with a combined seating capacity of 4,000.[3]

Incidents
  • September 9, 2006: a 13 year-old patron died due to falling of the Wild River (now Jungle Splash) ride. On September 19, four days after its quiet "grand opening," the Pasay City engineer's office ordered the suspension of operations of the amusement park coinciding with the same day that the management has reached a settlement with the family of the deceased patron and another but non-fatal incident at the amusement park's bump car ride.[9]
  • February 6, 2009: The Star Flyer has temporarily ceased operations after a man fell 15 meters (49 ft) off from the ride and died.[10]
  • 2010: The Zyklon Loop attraction suffered an electrical malfunction at the Lift Hill, now closed in 2011.
  • February 7, 2018: The Star Flyer attraction suffered an electrical malfunction at 3:20 p.m., affecting about 10 riders came to a stop in the middle of its hanging tracks for about 15 minutes.[11]
  • July 8, 2018: A man died after falling from the top of the Giant Star Wheel ride on that night.[12]
  • October 2, 2019: A huge blaze causes widespread damage to Star City (see Star City fire).[13]

References
  1. "Star City (Pasay, Metro Manila, Philippines)".
  2. "The Elizalde Family". Media Ownership Monitor Philippines. VERA Files, Reporters Sans Frontières.
  3. Sanchez, Volts (January–April 2015). "A pioneering amusement park shines bright in any season". PANA AdEdge. Philippine Association of National Advertisers. 11 (1): 46–47.
  4. Cabalza, Dexter (3 October 2019). "Star City fire leaves P 1B worth of damage". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved 3 October 2019.
  5. Ornedo, Julia Mari (2 October 2019). "Star City management pegs fire damage at P1B". GMA News. Retrieved 3 October 2019.
  6. "Giant Star Wheel - The Official Website of Star City".
  7. "PH's 'highest' ferris wheel is in Pasay". ABS-CBN. 28 November 2012.
  8. "Star City claims its Giant Wheel is "highest Ferris wheel in PH," has 32 air-conditioned gondolas". Spot. 28 November 2012.
  9. "Girl's death, complaint halt Star City operations". GMA News Online.
  10. News, ABS-CBN. "Star City ride off-limits after death of customer". ABS-CBN News.
  11. Orellana, Faye. "Star City ride malfunctions; affects 10 park goers". newsinfo.inquirer.net.
  12. "GMA News Online". www.gmanetwork.com.
  13. "Fire hits Star City in Pasay". newsinfo.inquirer.net.
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