It's a dam shame to see a New park like this go under so quick
they couldn't wait a year or two to see if they could recover ?
So as far as I know only Matt has been here and I think Sue ?
Did the wild-card variables that plagued the Hard Rock Park this year drive it into bankruptcy? Or is the collapse of the largest-ever investment in S.C. tourism infrastructure attributable to poor business acumen on the part of those who built and operated it?
These may be unanswerable questions in the mathematical sense. But next month's auction of the park's assets will indicate whether Myrtle Beach is a viable venue for a 55-acre rock 'n' roll-themed amusement park and whether it's possible to operate that park profitably.
In comparison with the original $400 million price tag for the park, interested investors need have only $3.5 million up front to take part in the auction, with enough backing to cover a $35 million minimum bid. That low barrier should provide interested parties - if there are any - strong incentive to take part.
Spirited competitive bidding for the park's tangible and intangible assets would indicate that the park's builders/operators had a powerful idea that fell into the yawning abyss of a declining economy - a key wild-card variable. If the park is well-conceived, the chance to pick it up at a "discount" of as much of 90 percent or more would be hard for amusement-park-knowledgeable investors to resist.
After all, contractors for the S.C. Department of Transportation will complete the waterway bridge from U.S. 17 Business to the theme park's front entrance sometime soon. The "discount" also should make it easier for prospective new park owners to operate profitably - at lower ticket prices than $50 - during our communities' relatively short prime tourism season.
As well, investors who believe they can make a go of the theme park could correct the current management's failure to execute a comprehensive external marketing program. It's not just the expression of perfect 20/20 hindsight to say relying on "free media" and word of mouth to promote the park was a terrible strategy. It's gospel among tourism entrepreneurs in these parts that you can't grow a customer base without destination-specific marketing.
But if there are few or no bidders in the Dec. 12 park-assets auction - or if the bidding focuses on segmentation of assets rather than sustaining the whole - local folks would have an indication that the park, as conceived, was never a good idea. Bidders would attribute the park's failure to such factors as relying on music themes rather than rides to attract visitors. Hard Rock Park's small size relative to competing theme parks could also be a factor, as could the park's location near an unattractive industrial zone.
Why indulge in such speculations at all? Certainly not to further embarrass the park's creators. The Grand Strand has staked its economic future on diversifying and growing its tourism offerings.
Local leaders need to know whether the theme park could have survived given a fair test in a stronger economy and easier access via the new bridge. If a theme park just can't make it here, we need to know that, too. Next month's auctions should go a long way toward answering that question.
Topic: BREAKING: Hard Rock Park FOR SALE; Execs Asking For Severance Pay (Read 3306 times)