Rosetta Brings Island Vibes to Midwest Theme Park

A Tropical Team Up: Lost Island Theme Park + Rosetta Hardscapes

The Lost Island Theme Park in the heart of the Midwest is a fully immersive tiki-island theme park and waterpark experience that serves as a testament to the capabilities of Rosetta Hardscape's solutions and what happens when passionate partners choose products that work as hard as they do.

This large-scale project boasts 5,376 sq ft (499.4 sq m) of Rosetta Outcropping and Kodah wall block, expertly installed and woven throughout the park as garden and seat walls. Natural stone beauty mixed with tropical garden designs gives visitors a blissful break from the everyday. Watch the video to meet the people behind the build, and read on to explore how Rosetta helped bring this epic theme park to life.

THE CHALLENGE:

Differentiation was key; creating a unique environment was non-negotiable. Lost Island Theme Park needed to create an immersive environment that was an escape from the typical Midwest theme park, most of which are riddled with uninspiring poured concrete walls and features, and harsh metal accents. A living, natural aesthetic was needed, and that’s when the project team turned to Rosetta Hardscapes for consistent, natural-stone-esque retaining walls and seat walls to complement the tropical landscape design.

“There was a real emphasis on creating an environment that was immersive as opposed to just concrete and a bunch of roller coasters.”

Eric Bertch, Lost Island Theme Park

THE SOLUTION:

Eric Bertch, the general manager for Lost Island Theme Park, was confident with the choice to bring Rosetta onto the project, knowing that every design decision would impact guest experience, hardscaping included.

“Rosetta really folds in nicely with that aesthetic,” said Bertch. “We don't like things that take away from the immersion, so putting in things like metal benches was something we really were trying to avoid.”

Rosetta’s Outcropping and Kodah walls were used to keep guests in the tiki story, creating natural seating areas, garden bed borders, and flowing tropical garden walls. By choosing Rosetta solutions, the project gained:

• Natural seating areas built into the landscape using Outcropping and Kodah blocks
• Garden bed borders and tropical plant enclosures that mimic beachside tiki vibes
• Flowing landscape walls that serve as subtle focal points, enhancing the immersive feel without visual disruption

“This project is over five thousand square feet of Rosetta Outcropping and Kodah. It took 26 truckloads to bring it all in. There are 1.2 million pounds of Rosetta on this project.”

Lindsay Brooks, Midland Concrete Products

THE OUTCOME:

Bringing a bold vision like Lost Island Theme Park to life takes the right partners and products. Local Rosetta distributor and producer Midland Concrete Products worked closely with the project’s landscape architecture firm to support the project’s immersive design goals. Together, they selected Outcropping and Kodah to provide the looks and performance needed.

Even with the different themes throughout the park, landscape architect Ritland & Kuiper crafted a cohesive hardscape design using Rosetta.

The bold, natural-stone textures and regional color palettes allowed them to design each space while keeping visual consistency in mind, making the hardscapes feel like they were made for the environment, not added to it. With the design locked down, it was time to build.

Landscape Contractor Maloney Landscapes tackled the daunting install. Fortunately, Mike Maloney and his crew had experience installing Rosetta and were more than ready to start.

When I have a customer call me and say, ‘Hey, will you come out and give me a retaining wall estimate?’ I make sure to have Rosetta pamphlets with me because they are what we want to install,” Maloney stated.

With a clear understanding of Rosetta’s installation efficiencies, Maloney’s crews completed the installation in phases spanning the course of 12 months, providing the project with:

• 1,953 sq ft (181.4 sq m) of Kodah wall blocks
• 189 sq ft (17.5 sq m) of Kodah corner block
• 3,234 sq ft (300.4 sq m) of freestanding Outcropping wall blocks

“I haven't found anything (with Rosetta) that I'm dissatisfied with in terms of looking natural and also having the dimensional quality and details that I need to be able to specify it, to be able to know what I'm designing, to be able to hand it to a contractor, and they have confidence what they're building.”

Mark Kuiper, Ritland & Kuiper Landscape Architects

Thanks to the project team and their commitment to an epic design, Lost Island Theme Park now transports guests to a tropical tiki destination–surprisingly tucked into the Midwest. By choosing Rosetta Hardscapes, the team achieved a landscape that doesn’t just support the story; it feels like it’s always been part of it. Lost Island theme park is a one-of-a-kind experience that wows visitors from near and far, and is a testament to what’s possible when the right partners come together with the right hardscape solutions.