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Southport Pleasureland future

bdrizzyb

Roller Poster
Hey new member here. Southport Pleasureland was my local for years and has special memories in my childhood. Now Norman Wallis has been granted a long term lease (said to be 99 years!) what do you think will come in the coming years. In the article for Liverpool echo it does say about him lending money for future investments, plus a investment in a dinosaur park. so what do you think we could expect in the next 20 years from this up and coming park?
 

Pokemaniac

Mountain monkey
Staff member
Administrator
Moderator
Looking at the park on RCDB, I could see it getting another fifth-hand Pinfari coaster, maybe a Reverchon spinner, perhaps one of those travelling log flumes as a semi-permanent installation. That ought to cover the next 20 years and then some. It doesn't appear to be a place for great expectations, to be honest.
 

Robbie

Hyper Poster
I was in Southport nearly every day for two weeks over summer and while the Railway is looking nice there wasn't much sign of any investment in rides at Pleasureland itself. In fact, barely any of them were operating and I only saw the log flume running once. But there are new fences and paths, so that's nice.
 

rob666

Hyper Poster
Cheap flights have really killed off small resorts like Southport.
From my own memory...heaving in the summer in the sixties, still busy in the seventies and eighties, quiet in the nineties, very quiet most days around the millennium, even with a big new SLC.
Wish I could think of a reason why it might bounce back, but I can't think of a single one sadly.
 

Peet

Giga Poster
When Norman Wallis took over in 2007 there was supposed to be £100M investment, there was some meaningful talk of rebuilding Cyclone, and of course the Knightmare link a few years later, none of which has come to anything. My expectations are low!
 

Chris Brown

Mr CoasterForce 2016
My very vague understanding is that investment was limited to temporary rides because of the land lease issue. Perhaps we’ll see a little more in the form of long term attractions now the lease appears to have always been resolved.
 

roomraider

Best Topic Starter

MouseAT

Hyper Poster
Doh, I hope it's not the Gullivers ride that's been relocated, as I already have that cred. I need to go back at some point for that dodgy Pinfari looper, and really can't justify travelling all that way to that dump just for a measly +1.

Should I hand in my goon card now?
 

rctneil

Roller Poster
Definitely looks like Crazy Train too me going by the square style supports. Spinning Racer is the also other possibility going by Reddit but that is more dark blue track and this track looks to be more purple.
 

Niles

Giga Poster
Southport Pleasureland to be be expanded as owner granted 50-year lease



quote: “A full launch is planned where we will unveil the detail of transformational plans for the park and beyond which will give the local economy a real and lasting boost."

Hopefully this will see some good changes come to Southport. ?
 

bdrizzyb

Roller Poster
Its definitely the coaster from Gulliver's, the coaster they removed because a wheel fell off, lets hope there is a bright future for the park, can see them doing an 'adventure inside' sort of adventure island style indoor play area with rides and an arcade plus hotel like down in Southend in Essex
 

rob666

Hyper Poster
The town just doesn't get the numbers of visitors anymore to sustain a decent park.
Most visitors are over fifty, the Thompson's didn't pull out for nothing.
Good luck to them with the new lease, but I just can't see the park going anywhere in the current park climate.
 

bdrizzyb

Roller Poster
Found a new podcast from Southport's Sandgrounder radio, featuring Pleasureland's owner. In this he does talk about the future of Southport on a whole . He also talks about plans too build a highly themed adventure golf course, themed to Vikings, with village theming and food/beverage outlet. He says that its 'nothing that the UK has seen before'. The future is looking bright, and if they pull off the theming well, I could see them going down the theme park route, instead of the classic fun fair/ amusement feel of seaside parks.
http://www.sandgrounderradio.co.uk/...e6JBA4sXde82f8HJ853WGYR7IGLQ_XIGAmpCsRwa4_cTY
 
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