Fifteen employees were laid off, and the Garden Pavilion will refund tickets. The RV park and amphitheater remain open but expect sparse traffic.
By JORGE SANCHEZ
Published April 8, 2003
CRYSTAL RIVER - Citing a history of slow summers and the prospect of an even worse one, Rock Crusher Canyon Garden Pavilion is closing for a few months starting in early May.
The Garden Pavilion, which held weekend musical shows and buffet dinners throughout the summer for the past three years, will close after the May 3 performance. Plans call for the venue to reopen in late October or early November.
The decision also means that 15 Rock Crusher Canyon employees were laid off, including Johnny Baier, the musical director for the Garden Pavilion.
Rock Crusher Canyon general manager Tom Hinds explained why the Garden Pavilion has the summertime blues.
"The pavilion hasn't done real well in the summers, and we've really tried to make it work for the past three years," Hinds said. "The reasons are that it's probably too hot and also that 50 percent of the population leaves for the summer."
The Garden Pavilion is a 20,000-square-foot, semi-enclosed structure, covered by a tin roof. Portable air conditioners have been brought in during past hot months, but stifling humidity continues to be a problem.
Hinds said the decision was made after a lengthy analysis of operating costs over the past year and a half.
"Really, after the 9/11 attacks, things have not been the same," Hinds said of the venue's finances. "With the economy and the war, we were fairly certain we weren't going to make it this summer."
Hinds said he hopes the summer closing will be an isolated event, but said he also couldn't rule out closing next summer.
"We're trying to keep a positive attitude about this," he said. "And the pavilion will still be open to host private events during the summer."
Anyone who has a ticket for a weekend show after May 3 at the Pavilion can get a refund by calling the Rock Crusher Canyon box office at 795-1313 or toll-free at 1-877-722-2696.
The Garden Pavilion is one of three venues at Rock Crusher Canyon, 275 S Rock Crusher Road. The other two are the amphitheater, which rarely has summer activities, and the 398-site RV park. The RV park will remain open through the summer, even though Hinds said the Florida RV industry also takes a hit during the summer months.
