The Ocean City Council approved a rezoning designation on June 25, 2026, voting 5-2 to declare the former Gillian's Wonderland Pier amusement park site as an area in need of rehabilitation.
According to city officials, the designation allows the local government to establish a framework for direct negotiations with developer Eustace Mita, who proposed building a 252-room luxury hotel on the boardwalk property.
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The landmark amusement park closed in October 2024 after decades of operations due to mounting financial strains from rising inflation, insurance premiums, and operating costs, alongside disruptions from Superstorm Sandy and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Former Wonderland Pier owner and current Ocean City Mayor Jay Gillian explained the economic realities facing the historic family attraction in a public statement.
"I tried my best to sustain Wonderland for as long as possible, through increasingly difficult challenges each year," wrote Jay Gillian, Mayor of Ocean City.
The closure of the park left residents and seasonal workers processing the loss of a major Jersey Shore attraction that had operated since 1965.
"It's not going to be like it was every year we come down, something is taken away," said KR Watkin, a 72-year-old Pennsylvania resident.
The final season saw large crowds visiting the historic property before its final operations concluded.
"It's surreal actually," said Andrew Boyland, a park employee. "I can't believe this is happening.
I'm upset about it but at the same time the amount of people that have come here ever since we announced we are closing is amazing."
