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UNDER NEW MANAGEMENT CNL picks park partners
After an extensive search, CNL Lifestyle Properties has reached agreements regarding new management for eight of its amusement parks in the United States. Five partners have been selected, all starting on or before February 1. Herschend Family Entertainment has been chosen to manage Elitch Gardens in Denver, Colorado, and Darien Lake in Darien Center, New York, while Palace Entertainment, owned by Parques Reunidos, will manage Waterworld, Concord, California.
Premier Attractions Management has been selected to manage Frontier City and White Water Bay, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and Splashtown, Houston, Texas. Premier is led by former Six Flags executives Kieran Burke and Gary Story, who already own and operate Nashville Shores waterpark, marina and RV resort in Tennessee and recently completed a deal to acquire Ocean Breeze Waterpark in Virginia (see right).
Amusement Management Partners, led by former IAAPA chairman and head of Ripley's Entertainment Bob Masterson, has been named manager of Magic Springs and Crystal Falls, Hot Springs, Arkansas. AMP already manages eight family entertainment centres for CNL. Managing Wild Waves in Seattle, Washington, will be NorPoint Entertainment, led by park founder Jeff Stock, who ran the property from 1990 to 2000. “We are excited to transition to these management teams as we finalise preparations for the new season,” reports Byron Carlock, president and CEO of CNL Lifestyle Properties. “These new managers are committed to creating positive, memorable experiences for our guests.”
New chairman at Cedar Fair
Cedar Fair Entertainment Company has appointed C Thomas (Tom) Harvie as non-executive chairman of the board of directors, effective immediately. Harvie succeeds Dick Kinzel as the American park chain's chairman.
Kinzel relinquished the role in response to unitholders' support to separate the positions of chairman and chief executive officer (CEO), but will remain as president and CEO until the end of his contract on January 3, 2012. The proposal passed with approximately 54% of the vote at a special meeting of unitholders on January 11.
Harvie, who has served as an independent director of Cedar Fair since 2008, chairs the corporate governance committee and the CEO succession planning committee. Most recently he served as senior vice- president, general counsel and secretary for the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company (sic).
21st Century driving school
Leading British go-kart supplier Formula K is partnering with the theming company KD Decoratives to offer a new look range of driving school products. “We wanted to put a bit more fun
and imagination into the driving school concept,” says KD's Matthew Kitchen-Dunn. “A theme park should be about having fun!” As well as wacky-looking cars and other vehicles, operators will also be offered themed buildings, talking traffic lights and animatronics. One potential installation is believed to be in the offing.
16 Gary Story
Story starts new chapter with Burke
Former Six Flags executives Kieran Burke and Gary Story recently completed deals to run three waterparks in North America.
The duo are the new owners of Ocean Breeze Waterpark, Hampton Roads, Virginia. Via their new
vehicle Premier Attractions Management they will also manage Frontier City and White Water Bay in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and Splashtown in Houston, Texas, on behalf of CNL Lifestyle Properties (see left). Burke and Story, who respectively served as Six Flags' chief executive officer and chief operating officer for more than 10 years, have remained active in the attractions industry, looking for new acquisitions and investment opportunities. In 2009, the pair acquired Nashville Shores, a waterpark, marina and RV (recreational vehicle) resort in Nashville, Tennessee.
Opened in 1974, Ocean Breeze Waterpark is the area's only full-scale waterpark, offering 16 slides, a million gallon wave pool and Buccaneer Bay, a water activity area with 11 small slides and a lazy river for children. Restaurants, on-site catering and private cabana rentals are also provided.
Ripley’s opens in Korea Believe It or Not!
Ripley Entertainment has opened a Ripley’s Believe It or Not! attraction at Jeju Island, South Korea. The new outlet is the world’s 32nd Ripley’s “Odditorium.” “We are delighted to return to Korea with our Believe It or Not! brand, one that was very successful for years at the Everland theme park near Seoul,” notes Ripley Entertainment president Jim Pattison Jnr. “Our Korean franchisee, Island Joy, has chosen a beautiful destination resort location on Jeju Island. Located in the Jungmun Tourist Complex at Seogwipo City, Ripley’s Jeju Island Odditorium is built from eco- friendly materials and boasts an exterior reminiscent of a robot (as above). Inside the 14,000 square-foot facility are a sculpture park, a secret garden and 12 themed galleries containing more than 600 bizarre exhibits and artefacts. Highlights include a hand-carved Cinderella carriage, a cardboard James Bond “Goldfinger” car and a large piece of the Berlin Wall.
FEBRUARY 2011
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