NEWS: Nashville Shores Purchased by Old Six Flags Management

[Airtime&Gravity]

Nashville Shores has been sold for undisclosed amount to two former Six Flags executives who said they have plans to expand and spruce up the water park.

 

Business has been strong since the park opened more than a decade ago, with the exception of an attendance decline last year, most other years recorded increases.

 

The former owner Mike Williams said selling the park was the right move made at the right time.

 

"We always had our eye on Nashville," said new owner Kieran Burke.

 

The 385 acres of natural beauty known as Nashville Shores is getting a multi-million dollar facelift.

 

"It's going to be a complete transformation. You're going to see great new attractions. You're going to see the place spruced up, and you're going to see a lot of improvements," said Burke.

 

Burke and Gary Story closed the deal this week. They're no strangers to the park business both are former top executives with Six Flags.

 

"We're anxious to come back in the business and really take that expertise and apply it here in Nashville," said Burke.

 

A master plan for the new look will be released before the end of the year, and some changes will be seen when the park opens next season.

 

Burke said don't expect Nashville Shores to mirror Six Flags.

 

"We're really going to build and improve the water park, get the campground re-activated eventually and certainly take advantage of the 310 marina slips that we have," said Burke.

 

Despite declining attendance at theme parks nationwide, Burke said Nashville's healthy business climate made this an obvious deal to jump into.

 

"We think the first year will wow people," said Burke.

 

Burke will be New York based while Story will work out of Oklahoma City. Martin Strobel will remain Nashville Shores General Manager.

 

Details about the changes will be released in December.

 

Hopefully they can run this park without running it into the ground like they did with Six Flags.

 

Link

Edited June 15, 2012 by jedimaster1227

[Shavethewhales]

Well, there's not a lot to mess up with this one. Looks like a quaint little place from the arials. Definitely needs some variety in their slides.

 

I just wonder if this is the first step in a larger plan to acquire another entertainment empire?

[thrillerman1]

I don't have very good feelings about this based on Burke's past performance with SF. I really wish Shane had bought it instead!

[thrillerman1]

Old SF execs coppin' off Beech Bend's new 2010 additions perhaps? Not that that's necessarily a bad thing...

 

http://www.wkrn.com/global/story.asp?s=11607033

[sixflagsguy5]

I went there a while ago. It's a fun little waterpark and we really liked their tube slides. They could use an expansion for sure.

[thrillerman1]

Nashville Shores is currently underwater due to the severe flooding in Tennessee. See photo here:

 

http://alisawhitley.com/blog/2010/05/03/day124-more-flooding-photos/

[jedimaster1227]

http://www.bizjournals.com/nashville/news/2012/06/14/nashville-shores-adds-treetop-adventure.html

 

The group of investors behind Nashville Shores Waterpark announced today their plans to open a tree top adventure course, kicking off a multi-year, multi-million dollar transformation of the park's 385 acres that front Old Hickory Lake.

 

Treetop Adventure Park, which will be separate from the waterpark, will feature suspended bridges, ten zip lines, cargo nets, scrambling walls and ladders, among other obstacles.

 

Since 2009, the park's investor group — which includes former Six Flags executives Kieran Burke and Gary Story — has pumped $20 million into the property, most recently adding an RV Park and lakeside cabins.

 

"When we acquired Nashville Shores in 2009, we recognized the tremendous potential of the property to become a great waterpark and family resort," Burke said in a statement. "The addition of the Treetop Adventure Park and our other exciting recent improvements are part of our long-term master plan to transform our 385-acre Nashville Shores property into a first-class, regional family destination."

 

The waterpark has more than doubled in size since then with the addition of a wave pool and the lazy river. Burke said more than 300,000 visitors came to Nashville Shores last year.

 

As part of a larger plan, PGAV Destinations is working with the attraction to create a master plan for the property. PGAV, a design firm, has worked on projects for SeaWorld and Busch Gardens.

 

"We are excited to help fill a void of entertainment options for family and children for both Middle Tennesseans and tourists," Burke said. "Nashville is a vibrant, growing and energetic city, and we are extremely encouraged with the overwhelming positive response we have received from the community for our initial water park and campground improvements."

[ernierocker]

Looks like they are trying to respond to the upcoming Dollywood/Gaylord project across town.

[better_by_design]

Looks like they are trying to respond to the upcoming Dollywood/Gaylord project across town.

 

I think they have to be concerned - although they've been putting money into the park pretty consistently since they bought it a few years ago.

 

It's interesting that the new attraction is being billed as separate, so presumably a different admission ticket plus combo season pass possibilities.

[disneyfan1313]

It's funny how these "zip line / suspension bridges" combo seem to be the flavor of the month for a lot of places. Is there really that much demand or is the initial investment just really low?

[cfc]

It's funny how these "zip line / suspension bridges" combo seem to be the flavor of the month for a lot of places. Is there really that much demand or is the initial investment just really low?

 

They just opened on in Freedom Park in James City County, Va., about two miles from my house (Go Ape). I imagine the "overhead" is pretty low.

Edited June 15, 2012 by cfc

[BeemerBoy]

^ Yeah, I imagine it's a bit of both. For instance, the canopy tour we just took in Asheville gets 20,000+ visitors a year. Just doing some rudimentary math, for what they charge per tour, that's in the neighborhood of $1,800,000 a year gross (8 months), give or take before local discounts, etc. etc. Not too bad for what appeared to be a pretty bare bones operation, albiet a quality one.

[cfc]

^Go Ape's office is bascially just a single-wide trailer with an air conditioner. You can see some of the ziplines and obstacles from the park's walking and biking trails (some of which pass under them).

[BeemerBoy]

^ I just got a look at it and yeah, Navitat's was similar in size. The one thing that just occurred to me though was the cost of the land in use, depending on what arrangements are made with each company. To answer Reed's question though, I'd say there's definitely a huge demand for this type of experience these days.

[Hilltopper39]

Beech Bend's new Hyper Flying Aqua Trax and Record Breaking Suspended Body Body Slides for 2013 will put this place out of business in no time.

 

But seriously it's nice to see the Nashville area finally getting some decent sized amusement park attractions again. I always felt like closing Opryland was a terrible mistake and that the city could support a decent park again if given the opportunity.

 

This will be the best thing to happen to NashVegas since Johnny Cash, right Scott?