Three years after Bridgend County Borough Council purchased the land on which Coney Beach Amusement Park has been operating for more than 100 years, the Evans family has confirmed that this year will be the popular seafront site’s final season.
The owners of Coney Beach Amusement Park have confirmed that this season will be its last, as Bridgend County Borough Council advances plans to regenerate the seafront site the park has occupied for more than 100 years.
The Porthcawl Waterfront Regeneration scheme, approved in 2022, will redevelop 50 acres of the Griffin Park and Sandy Bay area including Coney Beach, marking “the end of an era” for the town.
“It is with heavy hearts we would like to share with you personally that this season at Coney Beach will be our last,” said a statement from the Evans family. “We will be closing our gates for the final time this October.”
“It’s the end of an era, for over one hundred years we and other showmen and their families have lived and worked in Porthcawl helping to make it a busy seaside destination. Bringing fun, laughter and fond memories to so many.”
Coney Beach first opened in 1918, and is thought to have been constructed to entertain American troops returning from WWI, borrowing its name from the Coney Island pleasure park in New York.
During the same year, the introduction of a fortnight holiday for mine workers saw Porthcawl benefit from an influx of families visiting the seaside, helping the town establish itself as one of the premier tourist resorts on the south coast of Wales.
“We are forever grateful to have had the opportunity to have been part of so many generations of families’ lives, young and old,” added the Evans family. “Thank you for sharing our love of ‘all the fun of the fair’ and the legacy that Coney Beach leaves.”
The Porthcawl Waterfront Regeneration scheme will create 1,100 new homes, leisure attractions, retail units, restaurants and event spaces on the site of the former park, with plans drafted in partnership with the Welsh Government.
Though the project means the loss of Coney Beach, councillor Neelo Farr said: “We have also included a huge variety of opportunities for new leisure infrastructure,” including “plenty of flexible open space which can be used to host seasonal events ranging from fairs and fairground rides to ice rinks and speciality markets.”
Evans era ends
The Evans Family said… “It’s the end of an era, for over one hundred years we and other showmen and their families have lived and worked in Porthcawl helping to make it a busy seaside destination. Bringing fun, laughter and fond memories to so many…
