Rye Playland Discussion Thread

[coasterbill]

Good, now remove the other shitty haunted house too.

Uh… I mean, oh no. It’s such a classic.

[Rai Fox]

Just came across this, haven't seen it posted here yet, so...

https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/cbs2-gets-exclusive-look-at-in-progress-135-million-renovation-of-playland-park/

$135 million will go a long way towards turning that place around.  I'm pretty interested in seeing what it looks like by the end of next summer.

[coasterbill]

Super Flight is out. The website says to “Stay Tuned for an all new attraction”. 

I’m sure this news will be truly devastating for all…

[jedimaster1227]

Standard Amusements, the operator of Rye Playland has filed to end its 30 year operating agreement three years in, citing the Westchester County not completing their agreed upon investments as expected. 

https://www.lohud.com/story/news/local/2025/01/23/playland-park-rye-ny-management-deal-ending-as-standard-amusements-wants-out-westchester/77905072007/

The rocky marriage between Westchester County and Standard Amusements at Playland amusement park in Rye is heading for divorce.

Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins said the county this week received a letter from the private company seeking to end its 30-year privatization deal to run the famous park that began in 2022.

Just three years in, Standard has called it quits.

Standard Amusements co-founder Nicholas Singer, an investment professional who rode the Playland rides as a child growing up in Harrison, said the contract would be terminated on Feb. 20, almost three months before the start of the 2025 Playland season on May 17.

The company is seeking $57 million in damages and repayment for its investment in the public park.

"As we have made the county executive and his team aware over the last two months, if Playland is to open during the 2025 season, it will be operated by the county," he wrote.

Jenkins, in an interview following his remarks at the Westchester County Association breakfast at Pelham Country Club, said his administration was prepared to move on, with the path forward yet to be determined.

“The marriage is going to get dissolved,” Jenkins said Thursday, Jan. 23. “The question is: How is that going to work?”

The Westchester Board of Legislators has scheduled a special meeting for 4 p.m. on Jan. 24 to discuss the issue.

Westchester deal with Standard Amusements called a 'marriage made in hell'

County Legislator Catherine Parker, D-Rye, said the agreement was troubled from the start.

“This was a marriage made in hell,” she said.

Parker said the deal hasn't felt right since it was proposed in 2016.

"I think it would be the best if Standard went their way, and the county ran Playland," Parker said. "It has not been a good relationship. I'm not surprised by the news. As soon as possible we have to have this done and we need to cut all ties."

“This was a marriage made in hell,” she said.

Parker said the deal hasn't felt right since it was proposed in 2016.

"I think it would be the best if Standard went their way, and the county ran Playland," Parker said. "It has not been a good relationship. I'm not surprised by the news. As soon as possible we have to have this done and we need to cut all ties."

The resolution of some divorces often involve messy disputes over financial issues. That appears quite possible in the Standard-Westchester split.

Standard says Westchester owes it a bundle of money

In its Jan. 21 letter, Singer said Westchester had failed to complete 70% of its promised capital improvements by April 24, 2024, as required by the contract.

He said failure to meet the target entitles Standard to $11 million in liquidated damages plus the repayment of funds invested by Standard, with 12% interest added from the time of the investment.

The total by late January was $57 million.

If the county failed to make such payments by May 21, Singer said, then the interest would escalate to 18%.

Westchester County Attorney John Nonna, however, said in a Jan. 22 letter obtained by Tax Watch that the contract allows the county to cure the alleged default "as long as the county immediately takes steps necessary to remedy same and duly institutes and diligently prosecutes same to conclusion."

A major early challenge for new County Executive Ken Jenkins

Jenkins served as deputy county executive under George Latimer, now in Congress, until Jenkins was appointed county executive on Jan. 6. Standard's letter to the county seeks $57 million. He said the agreement struck by the Latimer administration called for a payment of substantially less in such circumstances.

"They are trying to get that, and that's part of who's at fault and the dispute, and that's going to go back and forth," said Jenkins.

Westchester Parks Commissioner Kathleen O'Connor, in a Jan. 22 letter to Singer, rejected Standard's notice of termination. She said the county had met its obligation to hit the 70% threshold before Standard sent the notice.

O'Connor said that Standard's announcement that it would not manage the park in 2025 was an act of default by the private company. She said the contract called for the management company to honor its obligations until the issue was addressed in a dispute resolution process.

Westchester official: Standard failed to operate many rides in 2024

She added that Standard also breached the contract by failing to keep the amusement park's rides in operation, citing back-to-back weekends in June 2024 when from 8 to 19 of the park's 40 rides were shuttered.

Standard also failed to pay its 2023 management fee of $400,000, citing the county's failure to meet deadlines on infrastructure projects it promised to complete. Westchester said it completed the project in November, 2024, which O'Connor said fulfilled Westchester's obligations for the payment.

That project to was to completed in 2023.

"The manager must pay the management fee within 30 days," O'Connor wrote.

Rob Astorino started push to privatize Playland in mid-2010s

The stunning departure of Standard Amusements will end a process that started with former County Executive Rob Astorino's privatization push in the mid-2010s. The Mount Pleasant Republican insisted that the county government should no longer manage the historic amusement park on the banks of Long Island Sound in Rye.

His successor, Latimer, the Rye Democrat whose home stands across the street from the park, attempted to end Astorino’s plan. But Standard persevered in federal Bankruptcy Court in litigation that cost taxpayers $5 million. Then Latimer struck a new agreement that put Standard in charge in 2022.

"We ended up handcuffed to the bride," Parker said.

That deal launched Westchester’s $150-million capital improvement plan at the park, with the requirement that Standard invest $30 million in the facility as well.

That agreement, however, raised hackles in the city of Rye, which revoked the park’s tax-exempt status. Standard received tax bills estimated at $3.4 million for 2023. While a state Supreme Court judge restored the tax exemption, the litigation has continued, with Standard fighting Rye’s continued taxation for the former Tiki Bar restaurant.

The judge’s decision on the tax exemption remains under appeal at the Supreme Court’s Appellate Division in Brooklyn.

 

Despite the pending separation, Westchester County advises that they intend to operate the park for the 2025 season as planned.

https://bronx.news12.com/westchester-county-to-open-playland-park-amid-legal-dispute-with-operator

Despite ongoing legal challenges with Standard Amusements, Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins announced that Playland Park is set to open for the 2025 season.

The announcement follows Standard Amusements' decision to back out of its 30-year contract just three years into the agreement, citing the county's alleged failure to meet construction obligations.

Jenkins refuted these claims, emphasizing the county's significant investment in the park:

"Westchester County has invested over $144 million, close to $150 million into the capital projects at Playland. There's no question about the investments that have been made. Everyone tells us the improvements make the park look beautiful, and we're going to continue moving forward."

County officials counter that Standard Amusements has neglected its responsibilities and mismanaged the park.

With Standard Amusements stepping back, it will not operate Playland for the upcoming season, leaving the county to manage the park's operations during this legal contention.

Statement from Westchester County:

The County has invested $150 million dollars to upgrade and restore Playland, while Standard Amusements has repeatedly neglected its responsibilities and mismanaged the Park.

Standard Amusements’ poor performance is evident through the following failures:

• Inadequate Ride Operation: Numerous rides were closed throughout the seasons, a violation of industry standards.
• Insufficient Maintenance Staff: The lack of adequate staffing affected both daily operations and preventative maintenance.
• Unresolved Maintenance Issues: Several repairs identified in the October 2024 safety audit remain unfinished.
• Withholding Money from County: Standard Amusements is withholding money from the County citing delays in project completion. Despite the County providing proof that all projects, including the Switchgear, were completed.

Statement from Standard Amusements:

For over a decade, we have tirelessly worked to revitalize Playland. Unfortunately, Westchester County has once again failed to live up to its end of the bargain. And once again, the County is publicly pointing fingers and misrepresenting facts instead of working towards solutions. 

In November, we alerted the County that we were terminating our agreement based on their complete failure to meet the construction obligations under the contract. By its own admission, the County has missed the contractual deadlines, despite our consistent flexibility and patience, including a blanket one-year extension on all their project deadlines.

While we will no longer be the Park’s steward, we are committed to facilitating a seamless transition of Playland management responsibilities to the County. We sincerely hope—for the sake of Westchester County residents and visitors, our 40+ employees, and ultimately the taxpayer—that the County changes its attitude and decides to prioritize the Park and stops wasting time and money trying to spin and misdirect the public.