Pre-Convention Bus Tours Haunt Destinations Revealed for Midwest Haunters Convention

The Hotel of Terror (Spingfield, MO) is at risk of being declared eminent domain by the Springfield City Council. The city’s Main Street Bridge is deteriorating and the city will need to remove the haunt’s building to fix and widen the bridge. The city and owners of the property have been in negotiations since 2019 but have yet to reach an agreement on relocation costs. “They’re not even at 50% of what it would cost me to renovate my other property and move it other there,” said owner Sterling Mathis in a local news interview. ““I have no problem moving it, but the problem is, the haunt is the building. The building is part of the haunt …You know, it’s built into it.” In 2019 the city offered Mathis $200,000, however Mathis claims relocating the 45-year old haunt to his other property, Dungeons of Doom, would be a $1 million project. Talks are still in progress. If the city and Hotel of Terror owners can agree on relocation compensation, condemnation proceedings will be terminated. The city council will vote on the bill on February 21st. 

A class-action lawsuit has been filed in Will Country, IL against HellsGate and Statesville Haunted Prison. The lone plaintiff, Amanda Zabinski, is seeking damages after she claims that non-exempt employees of the two haunts were paid “far below” minimum wage. Zabinski said she made an average of $6.95 per hour while working 8 ½ to 11 hour shifts, while the state’s minimum wage at the time was between $11 – $12 per hour. She claims in the lawsuit that she and others made no more than $75 per shift, and that the two haunted houses could not have operated without the efforts of the workers. Haunt owner John LaFlamboy, Jr. has denied the allegations, saying “Most of our people are above minimum wage.” He contends that Zabinski was not an employee but an independent contractor. Zabinski’s attorney argues that although Zabinski was called a “independent contactor”, she was treated in practice as an employee and there are hundreds of employees working in similar conditions at these haunted attractions. The lawsuit is seeking back pay and damages for Zabinsky and other employees. 

Nightmare Chambers (Foley, AL) turns Mardi Gras into the sinister Slaughter Gras Fridays – Sundays until March 5th. If you dare, journey into the haunted house on your way to the Mardi Gras Ball. Survive four horrifying scare zones, each more bone-chilling than the next: The Mausoleum, The Butcher, The Mortuary, and The Slaughter Gras Ball. Tickets are on sale now starting at $19.99 for general Admission or $29.99 for Fast Pass.