Electerik Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 The city can't run a theme park. Sorry. I just found this sentence really funny for some reason. /Like two dogs looking at each other trying to figure out how to work the doorknob. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoasterGuy06 Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 I have been hearing about Six Flags not owning the rides ever since it closed, and nobody has ever offered any proof. Several times (including today) I have gone back to re-read articles from when Six Flags took over and everything leads me to believe Six Flags bought ALL of the rides while NO bought the land and signed a 75 year lease with Six Flags. In fact, one article said SF was paying somewhere between $20-60 million dollars. Sounds pretty steep to only operate the park and not buy any rides no? Heck, the video even says they are suing to FORCE Six Flags to REMOVE the rides. If New Orleans ows the rides why do they want Six Flags to remove them? Regarding the S&S towers, I did find multiple articles that said when Six Flags took over the park in bankruptcy they had to pay $2.4 million to buy out a ride lease. S&S towers were running about 1.2 million each at the time, IIRC, so it makes sense that Six Flags DID actually purchase those towers even if there was some clause in the lease the NO owned the existing rides. The same thing happened when Visionland was in bankruptcy. Alfa Smart Parks also leased twin S&S towers for the park and when Southland Entertainment took over VL they had to decide if they wanted to but both towers, one tower, or let S&S take both back. They chose to purchase the Space Shot tower and S&S took the Turbo Drop back and resold it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Alex Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 Tatum is correct. SFI does not own the rides that were intact before their management of the park. This includes everything but Jester, BTR, and the three flats built for the Gotham City area. So when they removed MegaZeph's Gerstlauer trains, moved them to SFSTL, stripped them of spare parts and left them to rot in the park's boneyard, you can safely deduce that it wasn't really supposed to happen. That is, unless SFI purchased their own brand new Gtrains for Zephy. Which they wouldn't have done. The park wasn't great, but it was something. I personally know a LOT of people who wanted the park back. I did rallying to support Danny Rogers the first time he tried to get it going, and it got a pretty strong following from teenagers in New Orleans. Nonetheless, it's a poorly-designed park built in the worst possible location in a city that can't support it 100%. In the words of Kurt Vonnegut, "so it goes". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jew Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 I have been hearing about Six Flags not owning the rides ever since it closed, and nobody has ever offered any proof. Oddly enough, I googled "Six Flags New Orleans lease agreement" and every article I found only mentions how New Orleans bought the LAND and signed a lease agreement with Six Flags to operate the park. So yeah...I would like to see some proof too. It could very well be that the city of New Orleans actually owns the rides, but there's nothing in this story that indicates that would be the basis of the lawsuit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
astroworldfan1 Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 I just emailed Councilman Arnie Fielkow for the answer. Hoprfully he'll tell me. -Tatum Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr.Six Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 Its cool ; I've already been in contact with The President. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AllenA07 Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 I want to know what exactly they are suing for. It sounds to me like they're look at a suit for breach of contract, but I'm not really sure. The article doesn't say anything about who owns the rides or if Six Flags stole the rides (stole is the wrong word, the technical term here would be conversion). I'm thinking that the lease agreement may have included a clause in it that required Six Flags to actually operate the park (something saying that they couldn't simply hold the park but keep it closed). If that were the case they could sue for breach on that. If that's the case the most likely outcome is that Six Flags is going to have to pay a certain amount to New Orleans for the breach and the lease may become voided. There always is the option of specific performance (where the court basically demands the park reopen) however that if very unlikely. That is my best guess at this, but without more information it's going to be difficult to figure out what is going on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Airtime&Gravity Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 For the lawsuit to come now, I have to wonder if the city is in some sort of financial problem. Maybe there is a deficit, and the city council figured a relatively easy money would be to collect from Six Flags. Of course, whoever decided to sue is confused if they think that Six Flags just decided to not operate the park for no reason. As you know, the park is destroyed, and if the city council thinks the park can successfully reopen, they are mistaken. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Alex Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 There's no way it's opening. Especially after this. Arnie Fielkow wants to build a WDW-esque sports complex in its place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dj snow Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 All this talk of "who owns the rides" took away from the main point of my initial post: This could be a preemptive move by the city to hang onto some of the future revenue from the lease agreement. If Six Flags declares bankruptcy, the lease is probably going out the window, and the city couldn't expect to see any more money from Six Flags. Contracts such as leases can be thrown out in bankruptcy, but lawsuits to my knowledge can't. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AllenA07 Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 Contracts such as leases can be thrown out in bankruptcy, but lawsuits to my knowledge can't. That's not necessarily true. It is going to depend on the type of lawsuit to see if it can be dismissed. I'm not sure how a breach of contract would work in this situation, but my guess is that it would be related to if the breach was willful or not. I do know that in a tort action negligence can be dismissed in bankruptcy proceedings, whereas intentional torts cannot. This means that if the whole thing about rides being sold that were not the property of Six Flags, and the city sued for conversion, because that is an intentional tort it can't be dismissed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisZer0 Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 Nagin and his whole staff are the reason NOLA hasnt improved in the 3+ years since katrina. Why the citizens didnt vote these jackholes out when they had a chance is something we'll all be asking for years to come. When it comes to SFNO, im of the belief that a city shouldnt get in the business of running a themepark. Im not going to get into the legal mumbo-jumbo surrounding the situation or who owns what, but this should be another fine example of why public/private partnerships are risky at best. Not to mention, it appears from all sides that nagin is trying to run a hustle on SF Inc. to recoup loses that are squarely the fault of the city/parish.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ParkTrips Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 Arnie Fielkow wants to build a WDW-esque sports complex in its place. Who the hell would want to be outside for an extended period of time there? Sure, Orlando has its humidity issues, but New Orleans is pretty much a swamp! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VivaLaVibora Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 My question is that New Orleans just figured this out now that they aren't going to operate the park. I think Six Flags wanted to get out of it, but New Orleans said no. So, why are they sueing Six Flags for not operating the park? Let them out, and than they can build something else. They don't want to be there anymore!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spaceace12 Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 New Orleans rejected 14 million buy out in 2007. officials rejected a deal two years ago that would have paid the city more than $14 million to allow Six Flags Inc. to walk away from its hurricane-shuttered theme park. That's according to Six Flags ( SIX - news - people ) CEO Mark Shapiro. Article Controls Shapiro says the city now wants to take the deal - but the financially troubled company is in no position to pay it. On Wednesday, the city attorney said New Orleans intended to sue Six Flags. Shapiro says in addition to paying out the lease on city land in full, the city also would have been given 86 acres that the company owns at the park site - and waive all claims on city-owned land. He says Six Flags continues to pay the city $1.4 million a year in lease payments. The mayor's office hasn't commented. http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2009/04/23/ap6330069.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IStillPlayRCT2 Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 I know most of yall think our park sucked, which it probably did compared to other state's parks, but we dont have ANYTHING, lol. So if this park were to reopen, it would give New Orleans residents something to do. We have Dixie Landin' but that is an hour and a half away, and it doesn't have many coasters. I know I'll probably get bashed and stuff for standing up for our dump, but I'd be really happy if they would do something with the area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spaceace12 Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 If the park was to reopen in the current state of New Orleans, it would last a year at most. Sorry, but kiss any hope of a park in NO goodbye. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IStillPlayRCT2 Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 Lol, yea. I just hope that the city relocates some of the rides to Carousel Gardens, which is like a kids amusement park. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoasterGuy06 Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 I visited New Orleans for the first time back in January for the Sugar Bowl, and I agree there is no way they could support a park that size (heck, they couldn't support it pre-Katrina). I mean the east side of the city still looks like Katrina just came through for the most part, and even downtown and in the French Quarter there are still a bunch of empty buildings where places closed. It's still a cool city though, but SFNO's (or whatever other name it might have if it were to reopen) days are over, IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Clinksalot Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 They should just build a waterpark. That way if (when) it get's flooded again, it will be fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuartnz Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 They should just build a waterpark. That way if (when) it get's flooded again, it will be fine. You're sick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
astroworldfan1 Posted April 23, 2009 Share Posted April 23, 2009 There was a plan to build a water park a couple years ago. -Tatum Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeoplemoverMatt Posted April 24, 2009 Share Posted April 24, 2009 It's sad what happened to SFNO but suing Six Flags over it is the fastest way to accomplish absolutely nothing. How 'bout rolling up your sleeves yourself, New Orleans, and working with Six Flags to restore the park to working order? Y'know, actually solving the problem? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHILLERLC1 Posted April 24, 2009 Share Posted April 24, 2009 Six Flags doesn't have the money for demolition. NOLA probably wants them to take out what rides they can, demo and scrap the rest. NOLA needs to contact the former Six Flags CEO for that job anyway. The council members I saw on video seem to want to redevelop the property. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AllenA07 Posted April 24, 2009 Share Posted April 24, 2009 It's sad what happened to SFNO but suing Six Flags over it is the fastest way to accomplish absolutely nothing. How 'bout rolling up your sleeves yourself, New Orleans, and working with Six Flags to restore the park to working order? Y'know, actually solving the problem? Suing Six Flags is the cities way of solving the problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now