The State We're In: The Future of Cypress Gardens

Cypress Gardens became famous for its Southern Belles. But will they survive when the park becomes Legoland?

The oldest theme park in Florida, Cypress Gardens, is about to become the world’s largest Legoland. Long-time supporters are excited and worried at the same time.

Today, the gates are locked at Cypress Gardens. The roller coasters are still. The curtain has closed on the water ski shows. And the southern belles in their hoop skirts have gone home.

Cypress Gardens was founded in 1936 by Dick Pope, a consummate showman who shaped the personality of the mom-and-pop park. It became known for its beautiful gardens, innovative water-ski shows and southern charm.

But now, the loudest signs of life come from the ospreys nesting near the park on Lake Eloise.

It’s a time of transition for the park and the people who love it, including former state lawmaker Rick Dantzler.

As a teen, he worked at the park for Dick Pope Jr., son of the park’s founder, and reportedly the first person to water ski barefoot.

“We all skied and we all wanted to barefoot like Dick Pope, Jr.,” he said.

Dantzler went on to marry owner Dick Pope Jr. ’s daughter, Julie.

“We would beach the boat on Lake Summit, jump out of the boat, run to the pool, jump off the high dive, and see if we could get back to the boat before the guards caught us,” he said.

Dantzler says it was more than a playground. Cypress Gardens brought the world to the small town of Winter Haven.

“There was always something going on. Maybe King Hussein was in town, spending the night with the Popes. Johnny Carson would be in town for a week. The Mike Douglas Show would film for a week for a week there.

“Mohammed Ali would be in town. And they’d all end up at Christie’s restaurant downtown....it was very special,” he said.

Perhaps taking a cue from the town’s name, Cypress Gardens indeed was a haven from the increasingly frantic development and pace of life in the state.

“You didn’t have all the noise and the craziness that had in the other theme parks in Florida. Nobody was waiting in line. It just had its own feel,” Dantzler said.

Those lack of lines may help explain the park’s decline. The Popes sold Cypress Gardens in 1985, and a succession of owners found they just couldn’t compete with the glitzier attractions in nearby Orlando.

And now, comes Legoland. At a press conference in December announcing the sale of Cypress Gardens, a bulldozer dumped 100,000 plastic Lego bricks as upbeat music played.

Merlin Entertainment owns sea parks, wax museums, and amusement parks. Legoland Florida will be its fifth Legoland -- and the largest.

Legoland will feature kid-powered rides, a new resort-style hotel and famous landmarks made from the tiny plastic bricks.

As much as the park will change, Varney says the gardens will be preserved. There’s also talk of keeping the ski show going.

But Dantzler now has second thoughts about his role in all this. When the Park first closed in 2003 Dantzler headed a committee charged with planning its future.

He says there was a chance then to make the acreage a public garden, on the lines of McKay Gardens in Tallahassee. Dantzler and others wanted to keep it an amusement park, as it had always been.

“I can’t help in my quiet moments scratching my head and wondering if maybe we missed an opportunity there that might have been a better legacy for the Popes and a better legacy for the Gardens in the long run,” he said.

Then again, Pope was a flashy guy. A 1963 profile in Sports Illustrated labeled him “the most insistent, irrepressible and thoroughly outrageous promoter in sports and tourism.”

So, Dantzler says a giant Legoland may be the perfect legacy for Dick Pope, Sr.

In our series, "The State We’re In," we bring you interesting stories from parts of Florida that are off the beaten path.