Holiday World owners in talks over Kentucky Kingdom rescue
Submitted by Nick Sim on Tuesday, January 17, 2012 09:41
Talks over a potential rescue bid for Kentucky Kingdom are still at an early stage. Image: Steve Magruder, Wikimedia Commons (license)
The owners of Holiday World are reportedly in talks over a potential takeover bid for the shuttered Kentucky Kingdom theme park.
WAVE 3 News reports that the Koch family, who have operated Holiday World since 1946, are involved in discussions around the future of Kentucky Kingdom. However, the park's director of communications, Paula Werne, stated that the talks are only at a "fact-finding stage" at present.
In contrast to Kentucky Kingdom, Holiday World has experienced significant success over the past decade. While it has rapidly expanded its own line-up of attractions, the Koch family are now said to be considering pursuing inorganic growth by acquiring a second theme park.
Kentucky Kingdom will not reopen until 2013 at the earliest, with the Kentucky State Fair Board currently searching for potential operators. It had previously selected former owner Ed Hart's plans as the most attractive of several initial proposals, before breaking off talks in September 2011.
Former operator Six Flags announced the closure of Kentucky Kingdom in January 2010, following a failure to agree changes to the park's lease. The Fair Board claims that Six Flags proposed that it pay no rent for the nine remaining years on the lease - instead offering the state a cut of any potential future profits.
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Source: Wave3.com
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