Goodbye Hard Rock Park? Maybe not - New Buyer update page 6

[Stone Cold]

Someone must have seriously screwed up here. For a park the size of Hard Rock not to be able to carry on indefinitely under Chapter 11 must mean there are fundamental and significant flaws to their original operating plan.

Chapter 11 was designed for situations such as these, new companies or ventures with high start up costs, but long-term returns from their fixed asset base.

If a buyer can't be found for Hard Rock Park, and the debtors are unwilling to take on the park themselves, then it suggests that Hard Rock Park was seriously short on it's visitor numbers and that they must have known this was coming from pretty much the day they opened this.

Surely someone from a Middle Eastern consortium will snap this up?

 

[Antinos]

Surely someone from a Middle Eastern consortium will snap this up?

I heard that Blackstone was interested in the park, but who knows how legitimate that rumor is. The park is only 35 million, with a 10% down payment(http://www.screamscape.com/html/hard_rock_park.htm).

I would be surprised if there were no buyers. Even in our economic situation, it still sounds cheap for what it is. Geauga Lake went for what, 145 million(something like that)?

 

[jokerman]

What happened to all of the plans that were meanet to keep the park running?

And $35 million still sounds quite cheap.

 

[Snoo]

Money.

When you don't have it, **** hits the fan.

 

[Anonymous]

Could we not all have a whip round on here and buy it? lol Just call it the 'Coasterforce Park'??? I'm pretty sure that most of us are vastly experienced at running and building theme parks! Granted the may be on Rollercoaster Tycoon but that's just a technicality...

 

[spicy]

$35 Million is an absolute bargain for this park, whoever buys this is going to be sitting on a money pit.

If you think about it Led Zepplin: The Ride alone was what? At least $10 Million?

Get a decent team together with a financial plan taking into account running costs etc you will easily get your $35 Million back within a few years, surely?

Look at DLP, that ran at a loss for years and only made its first profit in 2005. Now that they don't owe the banks anything the money is going to be rolling in for DLP.


Although they did have the financial backing of Walt Disney which is a nice asset :lol:

 

[Tomatron]

It seems like the business plan for HRP didn't work out very well.

From the friends I've spoken to who have been there, it was too expensive, not very well targeted to suit the market, and the park were expecting too much too soon.

 

[Slayed]

The park didn't have enough money for promotion when it opened and the credit crisis made it impossible to get more.

Which backs up Furie's anecdotal report on it not being advertised.

They just had the misfortune to open during one of the worst financial years ever. Can't plan to avoid that when it's 7 years in the making.

As a comparison DLP was in absolute dire straits until it got a full credit re-finance - which is precisely what HRP couldn't do.

It's a steal at $35m, so either someone with spare cash is going to buy it & see it through, or it'll get cannibalised (horrible thought).

 

[marc]

They should have done the advertising like Universal did for IoA.

When I first went to Orlando IoA was being built and there were adverts all over the place, this helps to create intrest and people know there is something to go back for.

From what I understand Hard Rock did not do this, they did not even give out information in their out lets.

I can not see anyone buying the park, from what I hear its just not a good location. There is no other parks near it and people at the moment are not willing to travel just for this one park.

I can see the rides being bought by another park, even though none of them got very good reviews.

 

[A-Kid]

Bump this up.

Just got an email from the Discover Myrtle Beach forum:

A bid of sad news to report. Hard Rock Park has asked a Delaware Court to change its bankruptcy status from chapter 11 to chapter 7. This means the absolute end for the park and any chance of a new buyer.

For details, visit the Discover Myrtle Beach message board at:
http://discovermyrtlebeachforum.com/ind ... #entry5647

Just thought that may be interesting to some people...

 

[Jake]

Crazy.

The rides are to be sold. I wonder where they'll end up?

 

[wash]

That's too bad. I was hoping to go there this year.

 

[furie]

Seriously sad news. I was really interested in the park, and really fervently followed Brian's relationship with them, and the development. Obviously not enough to make an effort and pay for a visit, but it's the potential sale that counts, yes? No? Too late? Arse

 

[Antinos]

It's a shame. I too was interested in the park. I probably would've begged to go down there if they had more flat rides. It really is too bad, and is up there with Wild West World's huge flop.

At least Jerry and Aidan have some priceless merch now. I shoulda bought that HRP hoodie I randomly saw in Yellowstone...

Any ideas on where the rides will go?

 

[PLCP]

In the words of the Madagascar penguins...

Well this sucks.

 

[Pokemaniac]

Terrible news, yes. But I can't just understand how a park like this can fail so epically already in the opening season? With a little advertising from Hard Rock, the place would be as known as Disneyland in two years, they had the money to build all that awesome stuff, and no backup plan? I bet HRP will remain in Enthusiast history as one of the saddest incidents ever, along with, eventually surpassing, WB's Vertigo

My guess concerning the rides:

- All flat rides will be sold, perhaps to a chain, and scattered over many parks.
- Eagles (etc) will be sold, most likely to a smaller park.
- Slippery When Wet will propably go southwards, or to Asia somewhere. But remember, it consumes a lot of water, and the park needs a good water source not to end up soaking the guests in Legion bacteria.
- Max RPM will be put in storage and eventually scrapped
- Led Zep will be put in storage and eventually sold. No idea where, though.
- The Zeppelin will be bought by someone.
- The rest of the buildings will be stripped and remain on site for years
- The merchandise will find its way to local Hard Rock Cafés.
- The site will eventually become part of another condo project after being a dormant wasteland for years. Financial crisis and such...

 

[Tomatron]

Terrible news, yes. But I can't just understand how a park like this can fail so epically already in the opening season? With a little advertising from Hard Rock, the place would be as known as Disneyland in two years, they had the money to build all that awesome stuff, and no backup plan? I bet HRP will remain in Enthusiast history as one of the saddest incidents ever, along with, eventually surpassing, WB's Vertigo.

Funny you say saddest incident.

Personally I'd refer to it as a momumetal ****-up.

Whilst we might have the benefit of some hindsight, its failry obvious the forward planning wasn't done thoroughly. This article makes an interesting read...

http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/busine ... 08042.html

 

[marc]

Why will Max RPM be scrapped, I know they never got it working but they still could work on it at another park.

What a shame this has happened.

 

[ECG]

MaxRPM is a nightmare & not worth the effort to get it running. It requires a 3 man team of full time engineers to just keep it running, no more than two cars can be on the lift (wheel) at one time & every 5th car has to run as a test car. To top it all off, the ride is only 25 seconds long once you get to the top of the lift. Need I really say more?

 

[CedarPoint6]

This really is one of the saddest things I've ever seen from the amusement industry. From the top I spent up there talking with everybody, it was obvious Jon and Steven really had a passion for this park. Within the park, they really tried to handle every least detail in terms of amenities and comfort... it was the most 'at home' I've felt at a park before. It's a shame that something could go so wrong with a combination of just a few things (advertising, cost, economy...). The rides can go elsewhere, but they'll never get the same kind of atmosphere and mystique that they had at Hard Rock. I do hope, for the sake of the manufacturers, that the rides end up going somewhere... there's just so much potential left that I would hate to see it all squandered. It's a shame you can't retain the theming of everything... the great buildings and little touches that made HRP fantastic. I'm glad, at least, that I was able to spend 6 days there plus many more in the preview center... Whoever won those shot glasses I sent over to Ian now has a little piece of amusement history! I'm glad I have a ton of souvenirs from when I was there... at least it's something to remember it by. I guess even some of the best things can't go right all the time.