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Fatal accident at La Feria Chapultepec Magico


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(ex. Voyage going from 7 to 6 or Cyclops going from 6 to 5), but usually that's for a more permanent change.

 

Actually, Cyclops opened with 5 cars (even though the queue gates were built for a 6 car train). Damn that ride was awesome a few years ago!

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Here is a very brief video of after the accident, and you can see a piece of the wheel actually landed on a walkway. You can here a worker tell someone not to touch, or remove it because it is evidence in the accident. Wow, so that piece may have actually hit someone walking by. Crazy!

 

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So any word if the park is planning on reopening? I'd assume Quimera is done, but Montana Russa looks siiiiick. Being less than 10 miles from SFM I was hoping to do the trip at some point in 2020.

 

The park as we know it will definitely not reopen. The Ventura Entertainment company officially fired all the employees yesterday since the local authorities have made clear they will no longer let them operate the park.

 

The bad news is that Ventura owns half of the park's rides, including Cascabel (the Schwarzkopf shuttle loop) and will take them away, that will be a very long legal and logistical process.

 

The good news is that the City owns Montaña Rusa, and it will probably stay.

 

What's next is that after november, the City will look for a new consessionaire to reopen the park, but given the circumstances and the ride removal process I mentioned, I doubt we'll have La Feria back in the near future.

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 1 month later...

Hello everyone!

 

Sorry for the lack of updates, there's a lot going on lately regarding the fate of La Feria de Chapultepec, so here I go with the most important points:

 

1. Ventura Entertainment, former operator of La Feria is being held responsible for the fatal accident, as of now, two people (the chief of maintenance and the legal representative) have been sent to jail and are waiting for trial.

 

2. Ventura says that the City's government has not been following proper and fair legal procedures, since two international experts hired by them were denied entrance to the site, among other things.

 

3. The City has started to look for a new operator. Six companies registered as contestants and are due to present their projects in March for review. Two of them are in the mall business, one is linked to an older operator of La Feria and Selva Magica (not Ventura), other two are not well known and the last one is... Wait for it... SIX FLAGS MEXICO. Yes, we're all shocked by the news. No more details are known.

 

4. One thing that has been worrying Mexican enthusiasts is that, according to the requirements published, the future operator will NOT be obligated to build an actual amusement park. They will have the freedom to choose what they will do with the site as long as it's inspired by Mexican culture or nature, is affordable and suitable for everyone and keeps it's entertainment focus. Even they will be able to decide whether to renew, keep for scenery or scrap the historic Montaña Rusa.

 

5. The announcement for the winning project is scheduled for April 20th, so, stay tuned for more news

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I wonder if Six Flags Mexico is putting their name in the running simply to leverage the salvageable attractions from the park to add to their own...

 

That wouldn't be the case, since all the newer rides belong to Ventura and will be taken away by them. The remaining attractions are too old.

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I actually think this is right out of the Six Flags playbook. If they're willing to buy a water park in Rockford, Illinois to grow their membership base in the area of Six Flags Great America and add value to the membership then they would absolutely be willing to enter into an operation agreement for La Feria Chapultepec.

 

Mexico City is the most populous metropolitan area in the western hemisphere, it's growing steadily and if they moved into La Feria they would own the entire theme park market in that market for (at least) for foreseeable future with no meaningful competition to speak of and would probably bring in tons of new members. Conversely if another operator moved in and made some notable investments they could grab back a percentage of the market away from Six Flags.

 

Right now they might just be in on these meetings to see how everything plays out as it directly impacts them no matter what and while I can't believe I'm suggesting more acquisitions for a company that had the Q4 they just did and already has a concerning amount of debt, I wouldn't be shocked if they can move on this for a great price and if the price is reasonable I almost think they would be insane NOT to do it.

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I guess if a new operator wants to maintain this place as a theme park then Cascabel 2.0's fate would probably just depend on the conclusions of a thorough inspection. I'd be shocked if Quimera operates at La Feria ever again. Maybe if the structure is in decent enough shape someone could buy it and put new trains on it (it is portable, right?) but let's be honest... it probably isn't.

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Maybe if the structure is in decent enough shape someone could buy it and put new trains on it (it is portable, right?) but let's be honest... it probably isn't.

Say it with me now...

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I guess if a new operator wants to maintain this place as a theme park then Cascabel 2.0's fate would probably just depend on the conclusions of a thorough inspection. I'd be shocked if Quimera operates at La Feria ever again. Maybe if the structure is in decent enough shape someone could buy it and put new trains on it (it is portable, right?) but let's be honest... it probably isn't.

 

Both Schwarzkopfs, the Spinning Wild Mouse and 27 other rides belong to Ventura Entertainment, and they must be removed from the site as soon as the legal procedures end. That being said, Cascabel (shuttle loop) may be moved to another of Ventura's parks, but Quimera... I don't know

 

Only 8 attractions belong to the City and therefore their fate will be decided by the new concessionaire, including Montaña Rusa (möbius wooden coaster), Los Troncos (log flume), the park's train, and some older kiddie rides.

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Oh wow. In that case this would be a really aggressive play for Six Flags considering their debt load. They're an insane company though and I wouldn't put anything past them. I mean... they just tried to buy Cedar Fair.

 

Maybe if the structure is in decent enough shape someone could buy it and put new trains on it (it is portable, right?) but let's be honest... it probably isn't.

Say it with me now...

Edited by coasterbill
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UPDATE

 

Operadora de Desarrollo Humano Chapultepec, subsidiary of Ventura Entertainment and former operator of La Feria has just obtained "legal relief" from a federal tribunal against the termination of their contract by the Government of Mexico City, it was determined that their constitutional rights may have been violated and therefore the licitation process promoted by the City is cancelled until further notice.

 

Now, what will happen next? In the Mexican law system, a resource of amparo or "legal relief" stops any legal action against a person or entity and starts a series of trials to determine whether their rights are being affected by said legal action, these trials may take a very long time, from weeks to years, to finish.

 

In the meantime, the City is forbidden to continue the licitation process for La Feria, and the park must be left "as it is", until a federal judge makes a decision about it.

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I actually think this is right out of the Six Flags playbook. If they're willing to buy a water park in Rockford, Illinois to grow their membership base in the area of Six Flags Great America and add value to the membership then they would absolutely be willing to enter into an operation agreement for La Feria Chapultepec.

 

Mexico City is the most populous metropolitan area in the western hemisphere, it's growing steadily and if they moved into La Feria they would own the entire theme park market in that market for (at least) for foreseeable future with no meaningful competition to speak of and would probably bring in tons of new members. Conversely if another operator moved in and made some notable investments they could grab back a percentage of the market away from Six Flags.

 

Right now they might just be in on these meetings to see how everything plays out as it directly impacts them no matter what and while I can't believe I'm suggesting more acquisitions for a company that had the Q4 they just did and already has a concerning amount of debt, I wouldn't be shocked if they can move on this for a great price and if the price is reasonable I almost think they would be insane NOT to do it.

 

My guess would be Six Flags is interested in trying to get operating fees from the park in some sort of partnership with the City who is presumably desperate to move forward after the accident.

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