SFNO/Southern Star Saga Discussion Thread

[giscoStarbucks Enthusiast]

^Agreed, With out Shemp this will never happen.

[CreativeForceWhere Will My Camera of Doom Next Strike!?!]

^Wise guy, eh?!

Dammit, where's the "poke your eyes with my fingers" smiley when you need it!

[jedimaster1227Open Up Happiness]

http://www.nola.com/business/index.ssf/2010/04/minnesota_developer_withdraws.html

The Minnesota developer with plans to restore the former Six Flags Theme Park in eastern New Orleans has withdrawn its request to appear before the Industrial Development Board today to request preliminary approval of as much as $200 million in bonds for the project, according the board's administrator.

Plans to redevelop the shuttered Six Flags park in eastern New Orleans have foundered. 3 Wise Men Entertainment, a Baton Rouge company created by a Minneapolis real estate development firm, asked last week to be removed from the agenda the day after a news story was published announcing the company's plan to appear before the board.

In its application to the development board, which acts as the city's real estate arm, 3 Wise Men Entertainment. said it wanted the bonds to restore infrastructure and equipment in the former Six Flags park, which has not reopened since being damaged by Hurricane Katrina flooding in August 2005. Last summer two different redevelopment plans were bandied about for the shuttered park, but neither gained traction.

A telephone call to the company was not returned Monday.

In withdrawing from the meeting, 3 Wise Men said it may appear before the board at a later date, a spokeswoman for IDB said. The company's application was to be reviewed by the IDB at today's meeting. If the request had been approved, the application would have been considered by the State Bond Commission. Bond commission approval would allow the company to begin shopping for investors.

[jedimaster1227Open Up Happiness]

http://unofficialjazzlandinfo.yuku.com/topic/1957/t/More-missing-rides.html

Six Flags has removed all of the rides and parts that it wanted, the major rides that are left can be rebuilt. The minor rides that are left for the most part are just junk. The reason Six Flags did not move the majors is it has a stock pile of rides of the type that are left and is not interested in spending the 8 to 12 million needed to restore them, let alone the millions to move them. The damage to the rides in some cases is minor and in others major. Six Flags did major damage to Mega Zeph by removing the trains, braking system, safety system and other parts they wanted. The storm also did it a job in 3 areas (that can be repaired) best case repair cost is 2.5 million but more like 3.5 now as time is the enemy here (this holds true for the whole park after almost 5 years) Zydeco Scream, Log Ride, Spillway Splashout, Jester, Dizzy Lizzy, Sky Coaster and the Big Easy can all be rebuilt. The building for the most part can also still be saved. As for the rest of the rides its just to late. But who knows maybe one or two of them may still have some life left. Repairing and rebuilding the park is still something that could be done. Adding a water park is also just a matter of time and money about 20 million to do it right as a start. The whole park can be saved and restored for around 80 to 100 million however there is no will in the City to get it done and less so with investors who look at New Orleans as a place that could go far, but just has to much red tape, crime and government corruption to ever invest in. The New Mayor and Police Chief may help to change the minds of investors, so for now all I can do is keep working to that end, and so I am still here, still working and still holding on to a small hope that a way can be found to save your park.

Failing that I am sure that the park will be torn down, and I will try and build a new park in Mississippi. If that is to be the parks fate then I will ask the City to allow my company to save the rides that can be saved so maybe the Mega Zeph will ride again. Time will tell.
All the Best
Danny
SSAI

Looks like Danny Rogers hasn't given up yet... Now he wants to move the remaining salvageable rides from Six Flags New Orleans to a new park he plans to build in Mississippi in the event that he and Southern Star Amusements isn't able to re-open the park...

[Airtime&GravityWhy do I still have a donkey title???]

Well, you have to give him credit for not giving up, even though he should have a long time ago.

A park in Mississippi is, in my opinion, worse than reopening one in New Orleans. Mississippi just doesn't have the population to support a park, and tourists who visit Mississippi don't go there to visit an amusement park. I know Jackson is a big town, but unless they tried to market the park to residents of Alabama, Tennessee, and Louisiana, I don't see how they will get enough people to visit. Even then it will be really difficult to find enough people to come visit.

If the park was small, maybe the size of Alabama Adventure at most, I might be able to see it have a chance of surviving, but even if it's that big, I see it struggling like Alabama Adventure did.

Then again, I think this is just another pipe dream of Danny's that will never see the light of day.

[ginzoWhy do I still have a donkey title???]

Well, you have to give him credit for not giving up, even though he should have a long time ago.

I'm glad he's still at it. He's so entertaining. I wonder what he'll try next? A hostile takeover of Disney?

[OldJJmanBorn when stamps were 2 cents]

This is really becoming a pathetic, sick joke.

First off, he is posting all of this information to a fan website, which has a mere 338 members. I am NOT knocking the website, in fact I'm all for it (and for fansites in general). This man needs to become a little bit better educated in the ways of "Public Relations", and perhaps, having a competent person proofread his messages BEFORE they are posted would be a good start!

The New Mayor and Police Chief may help to change the minds of investors, so for now all I can do is keep working to that end, and so I am still here, still working and still holding on to a small hope that a way can be found to save your park.

Once again, this man is seriously demented. He only wants to save "your" park. He has absolutely NO vested interested in what's going on there, except to try and make a buck. At one time he was claiming that the only thing holding things up was the "old" mayor, as the new mayor would make things happen.

Tick, tock. Tick, tock. Tick, tock. Tick, tock.

Ahhh... NOT happening.

Failing that I am sure that the park will be torn down, and I will try and build a new park in Mississippi. If that is to be the parks fate then I will ask the City to allow my company to save the rides that can be saved so maybe the Mega Zeph will ride again. Time will tell.
All the Best
Danny
SSAI

This just absofreakinlutely cracks me up! (Not to mention, AGAIN, that Danny Rogers has shown a complete LACK of grammatical skills!!! (Use a few commas, you moron!)) Am I the only one that gets the impression that Mr. Rogers thinks that if the fate of the park is doomed, that the city will just GIVE him the rides to go open a new park, in another state?? Or, even more of a joke - sell him the rides?? With what money?? Didn't HIS company (SSAI) FAIL to come up with a payment of sorts late last year of a mere $500,000, to continue the pursuit of securing "GO zone bonds" (Or something to that effect)??

Now, this is strictly *MY* opinion here below:

IF (and that's a big "IF" ) he were to open a new park in Mississippi, the ONLY logical thing that *I* could fathom would be some kind of place similar to Kemah Boardwalk, near one of the more popular gambling riverboat landings. I'm also talking about 3-5 rides, tops. That's about it. Not a bad idea, but not good either. As a few have stated before, Mississippi doesn't scream amusement park, either in population or general demographics.

Well, you have to give him credit for not giving up, even though he should have a long time ago.

I'm glad he's still at it. He's so entertaining. I wonder what he'll try next? A hostile takeover of Disney?

Why couldn't this have been posted before April 1st??? We could have ran with this so well!!

Oh well, I'm quite sure that Danny Rogers will still be selling his sad story next year as well. Maybe I'll still get it in time for a good April Fools day joke!!


JJ

[larrygatorObsessive Overlord of the TPR Park Index]

Well, you have to give him credit for not giving up, even though he should have a long time ago.

I'm glad he's still at it. He's so entertaining. I wonder what he'll try next? A hostile takeover of Disney?

Through extensive research I have uncovered Danny Rogers "Master Plan".

A new amusement park chain called "Danny Boy Fun Parks". The chain will consist of the following parks: SFNO, Hard Rock/Freestyle, SFKK, Fun Spot (Indiana) Williams Grove, Splendid China, Blue Diamond Park and Bushkill Park. All of these places are ready to thrive.

Future expansion may include Ghost Town in the Sky and Conneaut Lake Park as Mr. Rogers was upset that Legoland swooped in with hundreds of millions of dollars to pick up the Cypress Gardens property. Danny Boy Fun Parks was ever so close to securing financing on that one before it got away.

In a bit of humility, Mr. Rogers has conceded that bringing back Astroworld in Houston is beyond his means.

Sorry, I can't reveal my sources.

[carolinacaniac"Excuse me, miss, may I pound my large rooster into your donkey?"]

Where's the aloe???

[jedimaster1227Open Up Happiness]

http://unofficialjazzlandinfo.yuku.com/topic/1962/t/Latest-updates-on-the-park-formerly-known-as-SFNO.html

There is always hope that some one with the money can be found. We (that is Southern Star) are still talking with a few folks who could make this happen. But I will tell you the truth its almost to late. The amount of damage is now reaching a point that the cost to save it will be more then just starting again. To that end we are now working on designing a new park in Mississippi where we do not have all the political problems, red tape and high crime rate to put up with.

Do I still hold hope that a way can be found to save the park YES! But it would take the City to just turn it over now with no conditions (other then us rebuilding it) and the city just lease it to us for a Dollar per paid admission with no less then a 50 year lease. If the City would do that I think we could raise the money to rebuild it. Failing that the park is a wash and its very unlikely to be saved. As no one in the industry wants the park other then us, investors are not interested in taking a chance with New Orleans after seeing what we went through with the City. It would take my company time to get this done and the park would not reopen till maybe 2012 at best. There are people who would back this move but only if the park was handed over as stated.

I have spent the last 3 years of my life doing every thing I could to save your park, far more then anyone else, and it is painful to me to see it go down like this. There are a number of people you can point fingers at but whats the use, nothing ever changes in the City Of New Orleans! I hope that the new Mayor can and will step up and do some thing to save the park, so far he has been to busy with more pressing problems but after the holidays I hope to talk with him about the park.

I and my company are willing to give it one last try as I still think we can save it. We are willing to join with who ever wants to help, failing that we are going to ask permission to remove the remaining rides so that at least they can be saved for future generations to enjoy in Mississippi right next door.
Thanks All
Danny
SSAI