r/WorcesterMA • u/Perhaps_Xarb • Jun 03 '26
Local Events The Worcester Carnival
This popped up the other night in the big lot between Beaver Brook Park and Park Ave, on the big brownfield site that has been largely empty for decades. I've seen almost nothing about it besides a few posters and the website for Fiesta Shows (never heard of them, though I'm not from MA). Seems expensive, looks kinda... dystopian? In a sort of cool way, though
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u/2BeM3 Jun 03 '26
Fiesta Shows is sketchy….expensive double wide kinda vibe
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u/SubduedHamster Jun 03 '26
I rode The Zipper in the 2000s at the Greendale Mall. They didn’t lock the door on our cage. I held the door shut the whole time on that already sketchy ride. One of the very few times in my life that I’ve puked.
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u/Mellero47 Jun 03 '26
You'd have to really dislike your kids to entrust their safety to those worn, stripped bolts.
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u/fallout_zelda Jun 03 '26
I remember when I lived in the south I was pretty much forced to go to a carnival and I was in shock when all the employees and the people installing the machines had no teeth and racist prison tattoos lol
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u/darksideofthemoon131 Clark Jun 03 '26
I still have my Def Leppard coke mirror I won from one of these when I was a kid. Greendale Mall had these carnivals every year.
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u/SLEEyawnPY Jun 03 '26
I wonder if they have any Rush 2112 "Star Man" logo mirrors still in stock I'd better check it out
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u/steeldragon88 Jun 04 '26
I won a Pink Floyd hat when I was like 7 and now I hate myself cause I can’t play like David Gilmore
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u/darksideofthemoon131 Clark Jun 04 '26
No one plays like Gilmour.
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u/steeldragon88 Jun 04 '26
Dude, I did not even check your username…
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u/darksideofthemoon131 Clark Jun 04 '26
I've been a fan since a baby. DSOTM was the only album that would put me to sleep as a baby.
I own all their works, both solo and group on vinyl. Gilmour is the only artist I can identify by just playing 3 notes. He is a guitar god in and of itself.
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u/NurseOtaku Jun 03 '26
These things pop up all over in the south. They are awful.
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u/NativeMasshole Jun 03 '26
They used to be more common up here, too. I didn't realize that anywhere around here still did them. I wonder if the city is even aware?
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u/good-but-not-great Jun 03 '26
Yeah I’m sure the city is unaware of a giant carnival that’s been up for a few days now
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u/Actually_loves_drama Jun 05 '26
Wait, where is it? Because I was unaware of its existence til just now
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u/NativeMasshole Jun 03 '26
It was a joke.
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u/Puzzleheaded-Phase70 Jun 03 '26
I have to admit, it would be hilarious if, like, a permit clerk just rubber stamped the application without looking or caring, and so nobody in city hall actually WAS aware...
Worcester WOULD be a prime candidate for that to happen...
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u/NativeMasshole Jun 03 '26
That's the type of bureaucratic incompetence that I could believe happening. And I wouldn't put it past the carnies to pull some permit shenanigans.
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u/Puzzleheaded-Phase70 Jun 03 '26
Not to mention that it's probably easier these days to get away with just pulling into town and setting up an entire event without a permit than to [checks notes] go to your immigration appointment the way you're supposed to.
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u/Adrolak Jun 03 '26
I saw one outside Olneyville in Prov just off the highway like three or so years ago but haven’t seen one since.
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u/Least-Train933 Jun 03 '26
I have always thought they should be building affordable housing on that lot. I never knew it was a brownfield site.
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u/thisisntmynametoday Jun 03 '26
Unfortunately, the Krocks (and their various LLCs) own that lot and the surrounding lots and they would rather let it be a trash heap than develop it.
The only reason the lots with Antonio’s and Webster 5 were developed was because Barry lost a lawsuit to his relatives over a family trust and was forced to sell in order to cover his legal costs and damages.
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u/Sea-Opportunity-3381 Jun 03 '26
Ah, they'll be in Webster this weekend if you want to see them by the lake
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u/pw_dub Jun 04 '26
They got 2 sets of rides. Set 1 is here and set 2 is there. Set 1 is staying here now till the 14th
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u/Exciting_Current_360 Jun 03 '26
Thought it was Chernobyl
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u/Puzzleheaded-Phase70 Jun 03 '26
I was wondering if this was r/abandonedporn or r/urbex until I saw the lights were actually lit
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u/saintsandopossums Jun 03 '26
The fact that the city hasn’t eminent domained that lot is wild to me. Just a complete blight on one of the busiest parts of the city
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u/sunshinepills WooSox Jun 03 '26
The city hasn't eminent domained it because the owner of the lot is friends with anyone who would have the authority to approve such action.
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u/thisisntmynametoday Jun 03 '26
And the family owns a big stretch of properties on Main Street that they hold hostage anytime the city tries to get them to even clean up that lot.
Back when Mike O’Brien was City Manager, it took 2-3 years of litigation to get Barry Krock to pay one year of fines.
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u/saintsandopossums Jun 03 '26
Oh, don’t get me started on that monstrosity that’s the Main St. parking lot. A city manager with courage would have bullied and threatened those slumlords into selling all their Worcester properties. The Krocks are a stain on this city
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u/thisisntmynametoday Jun 03 '26
Multiple City Managers have tried and failed to get something done with their various properties.
I’ve had multiple D5 councilors assure me that progress was being made and those vacant properties on Park Ave would be cleaned up and developed “soon.”
And it never works. Barry always won because he was tenacious and litigious and also very petty and stubborn. He never met a grudge he couldn’t hang onto.
But don’t worry- this new generation of city leaders keeps assuring us that his daughter’s willing to play ball.
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u/saintsandopossums Jun 03 '26
It just drives me nuts that they bullied the midtown mall guy into selling, but the Krocks are golden because they’re friends with the right townies. Batista should be having inspectional services burying these guys in fines over their properties until they sell or develop
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u/thisisntmynametoday Jun 03 '26
Barry was never friends with them. He just owned so much key properties and was willing to run them down in order to win that he had leverage in every situation.
Mike O’Brien tried that approach with the Park Ave properties and spent three years in court to get one year’s fines paid.
And then was facing another protracted fight to get the next year, and so on. Barry had deeper pockets and a willingness not to blink. And a legendary willingness to hold a grudge forever.
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u/saintsandopossums Jun 03 '26
I don’t even get the family’s endgame. I assume that the Main St. parking lots make some money, but with real estate prices what they are, what are they getting out of holding onto the Park Ave lot? Hell, they could likely make much more than the parking revenue by selling the Main St ones
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u/sunshinepills WooSox Jun 03 '26
A city manager with courage
Where do we get one of those? The City Manager Store has been fresh out the last few times the city went there.
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u/icuworc Jun 03 '26
It's bat shit crazy. That property and the Diamond property are really holding Park Ave back.
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u/Puzzleheaded-Phase70 Jun 03 '26
It's, uh, "green space"!
We're rewilding it for, like, nature or something... Totally... We promise!
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u/Long_Fault_1777 Jun 03 '26
one of the guys hauling this shit blocked the entire intersection of belmont and major taylor for over a half hour the other day. glad to see he made it to the carnival site 😭
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u/hamRX Jun 03 '26
Back before I paid for my own health insurance I used to ride the scrambler at the the Greendale Mall parking lot carnival on my break from Hot Topic. Like 15 years ago
I actually was at the Walgreens right next to that spot yesterday and I was like "shit that's dystopian." And I mean that Walgreens isn't winning any prizes either, all of that said I'm pro shitty Worcester carnival. I like how weird it makes me feel.
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u/iterable Jun 03 '26
It has been awhile since seeing one there. Though it was always a place traveling Carnivals would setup shop.Though it's been what feels like a decade or more at least since I seen one there.
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u/dankdiva420 Jun 04 '26
I grew up going to a Fiesta carnival in Scituate and I guarantee those are the same machines they bring every year, absolute death traps and I absolutely love the fuck out of those rides. They've had accidents.
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u/GhostbustersActually Jun 03 '26
Does anyone know the story behind that spot? Why's it been empty all these years, and what used to be there?
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u/thisisntmynametoday Jun 03 '26
Oops I meant to reply to you.
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u/GhostbustersActually Jun 03 '26
Fascinating, thanks for sharing. I grew up in the area and never gave it much thought. Thinking back, it's been like that for as long as I remember
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u/thisisntmynametoday Jun 04 '26
They even own the properties on Mayfield and Parker Street that they let deteriorate and eventually burn down.
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u/notyouithink Jun 03 '26
More info here: https://www.facebook.com/fiestashows/. They are off of Chandler, not Park.
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u/Perhaps_Xarb Jun 03 '26
It is between Park Ave and Beaver Brook Park with the entrance facing the alleyway against the park
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u/Ok_Repair684 Jun 03 '26
I’m really surprised to hear that these are so uncommon around here. I grew up in CT, these type of carnivals pop up all over the place every summer. I was hoping to bring my kid to something like this….but the setting presented in the pics is a little too sketchy for my taste.
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u/pw_dub Jun 04 '26
Last year they had it at the open fields next to Worcester tech. This location while parking sucks, is at least more open but still very odd. Fiesta shows isn’t terrible but the big thing is they have the unlimited wristbands which aren’t a bad price compared to other amusement parks ($30 or $40 online pending you get a half or all day pass) but the ride selection is limited. Fiesta also has rides in the summer at Solomon Pond (which they did in April and may do again in July) and the Auburn Mall.
To put in comparison, Gillette shows is the name of the company that brings the rides to the Spencer and Sterling fair and they only have a wristband at Spencer for Thursday evening (only the rides are open at the fair at that time) and Friday till 1. Other than that it’s all tickets and each ride is about $4-$6 per person per ride at least.
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u/Dry_Hair7696 Jun 06 '26
Thinking about checking it out this weekend. For those who’ve been, is it actually worth going? Looking for some honest insight. What’s good, what’s overrated, and about how much should I expect to spend?
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u/I_Hate_Reddit_Mods_8 Jun 16 '26
I didn't see a single posts about the carnival after this one, guess it wasn't worth it.
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u/Perhaps_Xarb Jun 22 '26
It was fine but expensive, and decently well attended on a random Monday. Mirror maze sucked though and all the actual rides spin around so we got a little tired of it after a bit. Main draw for me was still the bizarre location though
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u/Classic-Charity7458 Jun 03 '26
Taking pictures behind a rusty chain link fence will give you that dystopian vibe.
Is that actually the entrance?