Is it legal for a permanent theme park of this size to have customer and employee parking lots which consist of nothing but grass lots? It seems that when I lived in Obetz, OH (a fairly little village) it was against local environmental law to park on the grass of your own property. Why would it be legal for a multi million dollar incorporation be allowed to skimp on the pavement / blacktop but a private citizen can not?

It is my understanding that the Ohio Renaissance Festival expects 175,000 customers this year. I have no idea how many employees, staff, and other participants will be involved. I wonder how many cars will be leaking oil and other fluids into the ground of these grass parking lots. When the rain fall exceeds what the lakes that form can handle, I wonder where that oil and other fluids flow. One might think that with a huge state park and lake complex right across the street, somebody might be a wee bit concerned.

What is that circle in the picture? If the ORF inc. is right about the size and this permanent structure Victorian village (depicted here in this view from a helicopter) is 30 acres in size; that weird circle in the grass parking lot seems to be about five acres or more in size. I do not think this is a crop circle. Notice the many different patterns in the grass that forms this parking lot. Notice how they make interesting shapes and patterns. I am fairly sure this is clear evidence of very large amounts of standing water and improper drainage.

Most theme parks install real parking lots or at least grade the property in such a way that this sort of drainage problem does not exist. Even small festivals, which do not charge for parking, tend to at least make gravel roadways between the rows of cars. Not the Ohio Renaissance Festival. Despite charging to park, if it rains you might be paying for more of a flume ride.

Despite falsely advertising claims that the Ohio Renaissance Festival is open “Rain or Shine”, festival days have in fact been cancelled due to rain or shine. On one of the days when it choose to remain open during a near day long heavy downpour, I had the misfortune of offering to help someone move their car from the customer parking lot. It was like walking through a bog. Some areas seemed like small lakes. Steering the car seemed more like guiding a sled.

It seems like serious thought should be put into re grading the parking lot to prevent standing water and address the obvious problems that customers will encounter attempting to navigate to and from their vehicles during a heavy rain storm. In the summer months, standing water can create a very serious health problem.

Photo Note: We did not take the picture of the parking lot on opening weekend 2008.  It was sent to us.  We know better than to go onto ORF Inc. property.