Proposed "DreamVision" Park for Muscle Shoals Area

[thrillerman1]

Another news update: http://whnt.com/2015/02/11/dreamvision-soundscape-unanswered-questions-skepticism-remain/

[TexasParkman]

This is from the news conference on Monday .....

 

http://thescoopblog.dallasnews.com/2015/02/a-lot-of-questions-about-promised-3-5-billion-fort-worth-theme-park-but-not-many-answers.html/

[robbalvey]

Holy crap! This might be the most laughable concept art I've ever seen! It *seriously looks* like they got a bunch of 2nd graders to do their artwork for them!!!

 

[Shavethewhales]

The growing popular theory is that this whole thing is a scam on Asian investors. DreamVision sounds and looks like DreamWorks, which asian investors obviously know well. I mean, it only takes a tiny bit of sleuthing on the part of any potential investor to unveil what a sham this company is, but I guess they think they can get a few lazy Chinese billionaires to fork over millions, then they can disappear off the grid.

 

It looks like it's very quickly turning from another laughable concept pitch to a potentially serious case of fraud.

 

Edit - Yet another tidbit: Provident Globals headquarters is a condo address. I guess they got $7 billion to spare by being thrifty.

[TexasParkman]

Here is what I find strange..... neither of the main players in charge of this project are scam artists. In fact they have very nice portfolios. They have met with the Mayor of Fort Worth and have shared "inside" information- after a verbal "NDA". She seems quite convinced that it is legit. 5000 contiguous acres in North Texas is not easy to come by. Some of these things make sense. DFW is a major Airport.... North Texas can handle the tourism.... tough call.

 

There is however a man at trial right now in Dallas for selling shares of a fake investment company that was buying land next to the proposed Disney Theme Park in North Texas. What Disney Theme Park in North Texas? Exactly!! He had "insider" information and was buying land around the proposed Disney Park...

 

He will be a guest of the state of Texas in Huntsville for awhile.

[thrillerman1]

The latest headlines:

 

http://www.timesdaily.com/news/local/ceo-b-in-funding-for-shoals-theme-park-in-place/article_7159c9a4-b274-11e4-b812-5f17ca86f910.html

 

http://www.timesdaily.com/news/local/shoals-theme-park-vision-shared-but-details-scarce/article_dfe140ce-b273-11e4-997d-b748a8e89b29.html

[ejot]

I'm completely torn whether this DreamVision fellow is a delusional visionary or someone who's spent the better part of his adult life planning a single massive scam, and finally making his move.

 

For an extra helping of weirdness, definitely check out the Rick Silanskas CD on Amazon if Monday's Dallas Morning News story didn't already bring you there. You might think someone capable of all those glowing reviews would have progressed a little further in his music career, eh?

This moves me in the "scam" direction.

 

And then there's the strangely positive one-star review that begins: "Voila! Romance at its maximum expression. This masterpiece is better than a roller-coaster ride! ..." Perhaps a coincidence, or a personal acquaintance with tongue firmly in cheek....?

This moves me in the "delusional visionary" direction.

[thrillerman1]

Loopy Doopy Land parody: http://www.al.com/entertainment/index.ssf/2015/02/loopy_doopy_land_parody_pokes.html#incart_river

[Nrthwnd]

I'm sold on Loopy Doopy Land!

[BlahBlahson]

Oh my god. That came out of nowhere, and the narrator sounds like a Trey Parker voiceover.

 

They did a 45 minute "press conference" that I'm not going to watch, but man is that some specific satire. Lol.

[Ccron10]

^^Yes! lol

 

I have very little doubt with this park or the other coming to fruition and it is pretty much laughable (especially when they go and say, "oh, we are going to move The Alabama Music Hall of Fame to the park as well." Then you hear the owners of it go, "what??? This is news to me!").

After spending about an hour or two trying to find more about DreamVision, all I could find was that they made a short animated Hooked video, the CEO has a pretty strange past, and its hard to nail down when the company was founded as the BBB lists it as 1985 and Bloomberg Business lists it as 2011.

 

These are some of my favorites from the linked article from above:

http://www.timesdaily.com/news/local/shoals-theme-park-vision-shared-but-details-scarce/article_dfe140ce-b273-11e4-997d-b748a8e89b29.html

When asked about the logistics — getting guests and workers to and from the park — Logan simply said “(people) will find it”

The Shoals is about 45 minutes from Interstate 65 in Athens. That didn’t concern Logan.

“Why the hell would you want one?” he said to the idea that an interstate-grade highway would be necessary to support a development of this size. “There are all kinds of other ways to get people there.” Greer said the company has not asked the state for any incentives, but that is expected.

Just about every park I've visited (minus Knoebels) has at least one major highway or interstate to bring people efficiently to the park. I doubt a basic roadway or maybe even a four-lane highway would be able to support enough people for a $3.5 Billion-dollar theme park.

 

The company, which was registered in Wyoming in 2011, announced in 2013 it wanted to build theme parks, starting with one in Texas and going global from there. The Texas project appeared to have gone stagnant for a year and a half until Monday, when DreamVision dropped snow on a Fort Worth audience and told them a winter-themed Texas park would open in 2020.

Silanskas and DreamVision have had a trail of opened and closed businesses registered in Florida, and two separate judgments have been ordered against him for defaulting on loans. He said those are personal issues that have been part of his life experience.

“Everyone goes through issues,” he said. “That’s just part of my journey.”

Yeah, this is sketchy. I can't even make heads or tails of the history of the company and they want to go all-out and build a massive theme park? Relating this to Disney, it would be like Walt going out and creating Disneyland just after opening his animation company, but before he came up with Mickey Mouse and have only done several Oswald Rabbit cartoons.

[Jew]

Hard Rock Park 2.0

 

I'm sure someone saw how the owners of HRP kept re-financing and defaulting and figured they wanted to get in on the theme park scam too!

Edited February 14, 2015 by Jew

[dj snow]

I too think the chances of this being built as described are slim to none, but I wonder if there's a green card through investment angle to this. Here's an example of what I'm talking about:

 

Lure of Green Cards Brings Big Investments for Remote Resort in Vermont

 

Find enough wealthy people who want permanent residence, and you can raise a pretty large sum of capital from investors who (depending on their wealth) may not even care about getting a return so long as they get their ticket to live in the USA.

[thrillerman1]

http://www.timesdaily.com/news/potential-changes-on-shoals-horizon/article_bfac9e5e-b4d3-11e4-becb-434f400914cf.html

 

In four years, according to DreamVision Co. officials, the Shoals skyline will be transformed by roller coasters, a musical mountain and an indoor beach.

All are part of DreamVision Co. plans laid out Wednesday in a theatrical presentation to a standing-room-only crowd.

Many questions still remain — including where this giant attraction will be built — but, if these loose plans come to fruition, the look of the Shoals won't be the only thing changed.

The workforce and the jobs that would be open in the Shoals would be different, too. Driving in, out and through the area would be different.

And these changes are coming fast if you buy into the DreamVision plan.

Muscle Shoals Mayor David Bradford said planning for road projects typically takes years — five, 10 and 15 years depending on the scope of the project — and longer to pull off.

"We have to make sure it's a reality and that they have the finances to do it," Bradford said. "If that is the case, we are going to have to really start planning for larger infrastructure."

If a theme park is coming, traffic planning will have to kick into a higher gear, he said. But no one, he said, wants to pull a trigger on that planning until they are sure this development is legitimate.

"It's very interesting," Bradford said. "It is not like any project I've ever been a part of, but that doesn't mean it is not a project, especially if it is funded like they say it is."

Company officials said they want to be community friendly, and its founder and CEO, Rick Silanskas, said he knows the community will embrace it because "they've been a part of it since its embryonic state."

But right now, residents are more reserved than enthusiastic about whether the venture will occur, and some are concerned about possible negatives if it does become reality.

Muscle Shoals resident Barbara Linam said she lives near the Tennessee Valley Authority Reservation, which is considered a potential location for the park.

Linam said if it locates there, it would have a major traffic impact.

"I don't know if we can handle the traffic," she said. "It's bad enough now."

Linam said a great deal of money would have to be invested in the infrastructure if such a major attraction were to come here, so she wants to make sure those planning the attraction are above board.

"We'd have to invest a lot of money in it," she said. "Is it legitimate?"

She admits she also is worried about the Shoals' quality of life being hampered if it turns into a large tourist community. "I like a small town."

Colbert Heights resident Linda Byrd said she sees positives and negatives.

"My grandkids would love it, but I don't know about the traffic," Byrd said. "I'm sure the young people would like it, though."

Florence resident J.P. Burgess said he thinks it would be positive for the Shoals.

"I don't know whether it'll happen, but they say they've got financing, and it would be good for the area," Burgess said.

Muscle Shoals resident Joshua Guins said the park would provide not only a major tourism boost but also a permanent entertainment source for Shoals residents.

"I think it would be a good idea," Guins said. "There's nothing here anyway, so why not bring it? This would be good for the kids to have. It could keep them out of trouble."

Tourism likely would become the major industry if the venture is built and proven to be successful. Forrest Wright, president of the Shoals Economic Development Authority, said areas that are tourist-heavy typically don't have a large secondary industry such as manufacturing.

"An investment of that size, with that kind of demand, would change the way the community operates," he said. "That type of activity would not necessarily be useful in attracting a major manufacturing type employer.

"It would fundamentally change the community, and whether that is good or bad depends on the person asked."

The 15,000-20,000 jobs DreamVision claims would come with a 1,400-acre theme park and resort would swallow up the labor force.

"It's purely a labor force issue, not that the presence of a theme park would be negative in terms of utilities or education," he said. "The fact is theme parks use a lot of people and sometimes manufacturing facilities use a lot of people. The numbers they have thrown out — 15,000 people working at a theme park — would make it challenging not only for a new company, but, candidly, our existing industry.

[larrygator]

FYI - Here is what happened the last time a major amusement park was proposed in Northern Alabama. An interesting read about Space City.

 

http://www.al.com/opinion/index.ssf/2015/02/huntsvilles_space_city_usa_a_h.html

 

Huntsville's Space City USA: Failure to launch a history lesson for Shoals theme park developers?

Mark McCarter | mmccarter@al.com

on February 18, 2015 at 12:50 PM

 

"Have The Time Of Your Life In 1965."

 

That's what a Yellow Pages advertisement promised the citizens of Huntsville and the thousands, no, millions, who would surely flood into north Alabama in shared ecstasy over America's bold venture into outer space.

 

There would be: Amusement Entertainment Recreation Education the ad assured readers.

 

Launching from a billboard alongside Highway 20, a rocket soared toward limitless skies, with a banana-nosed cartoon astronaut floating alongside. An arrow pointed south, directing attention to a "multimillion dollar park under construction."

 

Mission unaccomplished.

 

The arrow basically pointed nowhere.

 

Space City USA crashed on liftoff.

 

Last week's gaudy announcement of a proposed $3.5 billion musically oriented theme park in the Shoals area to be called DreamVision SoundScape shook the cobwebs of memory for many long-time Huntsville residents.

 

Similar ambition and hype - Space City organizers even flew in Decatur-born TV and movie personality Dean Jones for the press conference - accompanied a project that was revealed to Huntsville a half-century ago last month.

 

In recalling the project in a March 2012 retrospective, The Huntsville Times' Deborah Storey led off impeccably:

 

"Space City USA is the biggest thing that never happened in Huntsville," she wrote.

 

Space City USA, with a $5 million price tag, was to be built alongside Lady Ann Lake, just down Zierdt Road from Highway 20 on an 850-acre chunk of property.

 

It was so long ago and the area so sparsely populated, the site was then described as "six miles outside Huntsville" and "between Huntsville and Decatur."

 

The plans included various rides, a volcano, a glass bottom boat and - incongruous among the Buck Rogers fantasies flying about- a narrow gauge locomotive.

 

There would be a 200-room, 10-story space-theme "motor hotel" adjacent to the park, with a space-themed restaurant and shops. The area now being cleared for Town Madison was to have been developed as part of the plan.

 

The railroad track was laid, including a span across the lake, and the locomotive purchased. Four domes and some offices were built.

 

Even now, one can see where the track crossed the lake. A few pieces of foundation of early structures can be spotted in the woods and weeds and a circular concrete path has been encorporated into development.

 

But you wonder how many people in the Colonial Grand Apartments or in the tony homes of Edgewater and The Reserve even know they're living where Dead Man's Island, Moon City and Time Circle were dreamt to be?

 

Hubert Mitchell was the Space City USA president and Nelson Weaver was chairman of the board. To support their project, they sold stock in the corporation for $2 a share. More than a few Huntsvillians jumped onboard with their checkbooks.

 

But, by 1967, it was clear Space City USA was earthbound. Despite some construction and civic-minded support, the project was doomed. Things wound up in court. On October 17, 1967, only a few weeks before the Huntsville-built Saturn V would propel the first Apollo capsule into space, the assets of Space City USA were sold.

 

"An amusement park scheme which fell flat on its face and took some $2 million in capital with it," The Times noted.

 

Not long after Storey's reporting, UAH professor Dr. J.P. Ballenger assigned his students in a Project Management class to study Space City USA's failure.

 

To wit: Bad weather. Lack of direction. Reliance on stock sales and not enough foundation of start-up cash. Swampy site problems. Underestimating costs. The folly of competing against Disney. Lack of experience with theme parks. Poor planning.

 

Other than that, well, it was A-OK.

 

Now, to look west to the Shoals: Can DreamVision SoundScape really work? Or does it set up a bunch of grad students for an easy A some day?

Edited February 19, 2015 by larrygator

[Nrthwnd]

 

"Old Travel Town"...?

[ElvisLuv]

I was reading a piece in the Dallas Business Journal about the Ft. Worth part of this. Apparently, the Thomas Kinkade Cos. are part of this and his paintings will serve as inspiration in design aspects. Just what I read. This is about the most pie in the sky thing out there in a sea of pie.

[Shavethewhales]

^They did mention that in the presentation, but how much do you want to bet that Thomas Kinkade's company/trust/whatever has not even been contacted and their name is just being used to bolster the image of this proposal. I think they just reached for whatever brands/entities are recognizable in china and could be associated with the development without them being sued over it.

[ElvisLuv]

^They did mention that in the presentation, but how much do you want to bet that Thomas Kinkade's company/trust/whatever has not even been contacted and their name is just being used to bolster the image of this proposal. I think they just reached for whatever brands/entities are recognizable in china and could be associated with the development without them being sued over it.

 

There's this:

The theme park's winter landscape, which was inspired by artwork from Thomas Kinkade, will be created using indoor snowmaking technology, which is being overseen by Malcolm Clulow. The Thomas Kinkade Co. shares a partnership with the group behind the vision for the park, said John Hasting, CEO of the Thomas Kinkade Co.

 

http://m.bizjournals.com/dallas/news/2015/02/09/dreamvision-makes-big-production-of-3-5b.html?page=all&r=full

[thrillerman1]

From Saturday:

 

http://www.timesdaily.com/news/tva-land-eyed/article_060d4c0c-ba58-11e4-90e0-af4c4ec13f63.html

 

Speculation about where a company proposing a massive theme park in the Shoals would build remains rampant, but it appears likely one target is the Tennessee Valley Authority's Muscle Shoals Reservation.

TVA officials acknowledge there has been intense interest in the more than 1,000 acres declared surplus on the reservation, but they won't reveal who is expressing interest.

TN Valley Wheels Find It 2014 (300x250)

"We've received a lot of interest in the Muscle Shoals property, but we cannot name any specific parties," TVA spokeswoman Kristine Cooper said.

DreamVision, of Fort Worth, Texas, announced two weeks ago it plans to build a 1,400-acre music-themed park with an investment of an eye-popping $3.5 billion. A company spokesman said three tracts of land have been identified as potential building sites both north and south of the Tennessee River, but he would not provide specifics.

One of those sites is the reservation on the south side of the river in Colbert County, according to state Rep. Lynn Greer, R-Rogersville. As many as 1,400 acres have been identified by TVA as available for redevelopment.

TVA is devising a master plan to auction the property, Cooper said. That includes establishing fair market value for the land, based on the parcels auctioned, she said.

The market value "depends on what parcels are offered," Cooper said. "Each parcel would have to have fair market values established. That won't be a price per acre for all the property. It depends on the parcels, or whether the entire property is offered for auction."

Charles Rose, president of the Shoals Environmental Alliance, said he has closely followed TVA's decision to declare some of the 3,000-acre reservation surplus. His group is concerned that some of the surplus property is environmentally, ecologically and historically sensitive.

"In the meetings I have attended with TVA in the past about the redevelopment of the property, their first choice is to find a buyer who would buy all of the property," he said.

Wildlife, history issues

 

The portion of the reservation north of Reservation Road, which borders the river and includes walking trails built by the Civilian Conservation Corps, is not included in the surplus property. But much of the land south of the road is included, and that concerns Rose.

"TVA's own reports mention over 50 species of mammals, reptiles and amphibians that reside there. A TVA biologist has documented the sighting of 259 species of birds on the reservation," he said. "The final Environmental Impact Study provides for a wildlife corridor between the redevelopment tracts and the north side of the road."

But if the property south of the road is developed into a theme park, hundreds of acres of habitat would be lost, putting too much pressure on the property north of the road, he said.

Then there is the historic nature of the reservation. It was originally owned by the Army Corps of Engineers, which began construction of Wilson Dam in 1918. TVA took over the property when Congress created the agency in 1933 as part of President Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal.

"The entire reservation is eligible to be on the National Historic Register, and a lot of the buildings are eligible, too," Rose said. "There are two historic cemeteries on the reservation, one near the TVA Credit Union building, and another in a kudzu patch known as Cuba Cemetery."

Governance questioned

 

Another part of the surplus process is establishing a governing authority once the property is auctioned. The North Alabama Cooperative District would include five governmental entities that would have some say over how the land is developed. Muscle Shoals and Sheffield would divide the property and establish city codes.

Rose questioned whether those codes and ordinances would be accepted by a single, large buyer. He has questioned whether the two cities would alter their zoning after they take control, weakening the environmentally friendly recommendations from TVA in the master plan.

"You could call it a sustainable concept, but it is a concept with no enforcement in it," he said.

The cooperative district is still in its formative stages, and there is no indication when rules will be finalized or when the property will be offered for auction.

Sheffield Mayor Ian Sanford said he was told DreamVision is talking to TVA about the land, but no details have emerged. He said something of the magnitude proposed by DreamVision might be better built outside the city limits on land that could be served by new and expanded highways.

"We all see what is outside Disney (World)," he said. "It would bring quite a few investors."

Sanford said if TVA sold the surplus property to a single entity, the agency likely would require a performance bond and benchmarks for development.

Cooper, the TVA spokeswoman, said potential buyers "must qualify as a bidder who can offer the minimum bid."

[Shavethewhales]

I was thinking about this today. I had actually forgotten all about it. Sure enough, they've fallen off the grid:

 

http://whnt.com/2015/04/15/two-months-of-silence-after-dreamvision-theme-park-announcement/

 

MUSCLE SHOALS, Ala. (WHNT) – The DreamVision Company released plans for a multi-billion dollar theme park in the Shoals on February 11. Since then, nothing else has been said.

 

Executives announced more details were to follow, such as when and where that park would be. Two months later, silence. That’s according to city leaders in the Shoals.

 

“I’ve had no contact with them,” said Sheffield Mayor Ian Sanford. “Whether they’re working behind the scenes or not, I have no way of knowing.”

 

He’s not the only one. We checked with Tuscumbia and Florence city leaders, who also said no one has contacted them since.

 

I mean, it's just amazing that they put on not one, but two ridiculous shows with mayors and dignitaries dragged in - for nothing! They don't even have land! It's still boggling my mind. I just really want to hear an end story here. Who were they actually trying to fool. Did they ever get that Chinese investment money? Maybe they're already in Brazil.

[Jew]

It's obvious it's bogus. The real question is how long it will be before they are charged with fraud.

[chadster]

Whew, it's dusty in here...probably going to stay that way too.

 

Dec 7, 2015

Last February, a company named DreamVision and their financial partners Provident Global Capital, said they would be building a $3.5 billion theme park in the Shoals.

 

During a press conference in February both companies said they would be breaking ground on the theme park by the end of 2015.

 

With only a few weeks left in the year officials in the Shoals still haven't heard from DreamVision or Provident Global Capital.

 

We do know Provident Global Capital claims to be renting the 3rd floor space at 412 South Court Street. We have confirmed this in other stories and PGC also lists that as their address on their website.

 

We stopped by the 3rd floor of the office building Monday and no one was there and the building space appeared to be getting remodeled.

 

We have emailed both PGC and DreamVision and have not heard from either company at this time, nor do we know of any large land purchases where the theme park could go.

 

Our last email from PGC stated that site plans in Alabama for the theme park had not been finalized.

 

Both companies only have a few weeks to make good on their promise.

 

www.waaytv.com/appnews/no-movement-on-elaborate-theme-park-plans-in-the-shoals/article_f05a6912-9d32-11e5-8e4b-af7d311343bb.html

[larrygator]

^Not surprising, thanks for digging up the latest to amuse us all.

[larrygator]

File it under 1-800 - notgonnahapen

 

http://www.shoalsinsider.com/florence/dreamvision-amusement-park-backer-fails-to-pay-rent/

 

Dreamvision Amusement Park Backer Fails to Pay Rent

 

Bryan Robinson, CEO of companies that backed the Dreamvision amusement park, is being sued by his landlord for not paying rent on his office.

 

Robinson Capital Investments was renting an office at 412 S. Court Street in Florence. Rent was not paid in February, court documents state.

 

The legal documents state that Robinson gave a personal guaranty in which he “unconditionally and absolutely guarantees full and

prompt payment and performance of all rent, liabilities, and obligations”.

 

The term of the Lease is from May 1, 2015 through April 30, 2020, and

Robinson Capital agreed to pay total rent of $245,824.20.

 

Greater Alabama Building, L.L.C., is seeking damages from Robinson Capital Investments, LLC and Bryan

Robinson for the amount of back rent due under the Lease, the amount of lost

future rent under the Lease, late fees, court costs, attorney fees, pre- and postjudgment

interest, and such other and further relief as the Court may deem

appropriate.

 

The amusment park, plannned to be built in Lauderdale County, has been severly delayed.

 

Robinson is also being sued in Tennesse for a Christmas pageant production that had problems and by the state of Alabama for selling securties without having the proper registration.