Artegon Site for New Theme Park?

[fryoj]

And its not like its really out of the way from their existing properties. It's just as close as Wet N Wild is and once the Highway work is done, It'll be just as accessible. I can't see a reason they wouldn't want to buy it.

 

[WAJAS]

I say give Artegon to Schlitterbahn to play with. Especially since it seems like the Fort Lauderdale site is caught in perpetual development hell.


They are building a new overpass from that general area that will connect with Major Blvd. over by Universal as part of the I-4 Ultimate project, but unfortunately I don't think that includes any new interstate exits.

It includes an eastbound on ramp onto the Lexus lanes and a westbound off ramp.

 

[Kraken&Manta]

As much as I would love to see a new park in Orlando, losing Fuddruckers would be a crime against humanity.

 

[Scott W.]

As much as I would love to see a new park in Orlando, losing Fuddruckers would be a crime against humanity.

As a Scot, I find that name hilarious.

 

[Galaxy Defender]

As much as I would love to see a new park in Orlando, losing Fuddruckers would be a crime against humanity.

I forgot there was a Fuddruckers at Artegon. Maybe a new park could just build around it.

 

[Nick]

A Fuddruckers can go into some future CW 2.0 though! The one thing that's rare to find more of once you run out of is land. You can move businesses around all over the place, but once you run out of land, you're screwed.

With the recent land purchase last November, Uni clearly has a lot of land still, but this would just be something extra for them to have in their back pocket.

 

[IAmFloridaBorn]

I can't agree with that. Attendance-wise, Orlando already has the top two, possibly three, water parks in the country. When Volcano Bay opens next year, it's sure to join that list. Two of those--Aquatica and VB--are basically on the same street as this property (can see VB easily from I-Drive even if you access from Turkey Lake). On top of that, Margaritaville will also have a water park component open to the public.

At a certain point, you hit market saturation. Water parks is one of those things the big boys do well, better than anybody else, at a fairly reasonable price. To compete, you need to go in a different direction--thrill rides is certainly one route, an indoor park might be another. But a sixth water park will instantly turn Wet n Wild.

I'm solely speaking on the loss of Wet N Wild from International Drive core. That location could be a steal for local support.

 

[Mr. EPCOT]

As much as I would love to see a new park in Orlando, losing Fuddruckers would be a crime against humanity.

There's one at Crossroads (535, near Disney Springs).

 

[DK745]

I like going to the movie theater at Artegon while on vacation (if I have time.) Those reclining seats are amazing. It'd be a shame to lose out on that.

 

[Galaxy Defender]

Artegon sold that property to the theater so it would not be part of the sale, though I'm sure there would be separate negotiations to buy that property.

 

[maxairmike]

Just to add my $.02...

Six Flags and Cedar Fair don't make sense to me...in that specific location. I think either could more than hold their own as a strong regional park for Florida residents, just in a different location (like, say, near US 27 or the north Orlando metro area, or even the Ocala/75 and Turnpike area). This would have been a perfect spot for Merlin to put Florida's LEGOLAND, as was Posner Park or Splendid China compared to where they decided to put it. Given their current state with LEGOLAND and lack of another current attraction concept that would compliment instead of hurt their existing business (mainly LEGOLAND), I would write them out of the picture as well. That leaves us with Herschend for the major amusement park players, and I think they're the one that would fit best into the area, but maybe not as a typical amusement/theme park development. I'm not quite sure what I would draw up as a development for Herschend in that location, but I don't think it would be a "normal" park where rides are the main attraction. I can see a well done dinner show by them giving Pirates some issues, or forcing them to up their game at least, and it would fit in very well as an individual component into the makeup of I-Drive and what consumers expect out of the area.

The idea of converting/retrofitting the existing structure into an indoor water park, at least in part, is a very interesting idea that I think could hold some merit, but I'm not sure that Schlitterbahn is up to that task at the moment. Given Great Wolf Lodge moving in off 535 I would bet that Kalahari Resorts is looking into the attractions area; and while I always envisioned them holding a location closer to WDW, perhaps the Artegon location would make just as much sense, and provide a little bit of a cushion from competing directly with GWL. Kalahari makes a lot of sense for the location, if you take a look at their resorts as a whole, as they're not just a hotel with an indoor water park attached. They also cover the convention and timeshare sectors as well, which seems like it would be a good fit for the area as an overall business.

In the end, I would lean more towards manufactured speculation to drive up prices, based on the "domestic with international ties/partners" verbiage.

However...what if that verbiage was reversed? What if this is an international player with domestic associations? My first thought with that is Wanda. I think they may have an itch to scratch by building in the Orlando market to compete with both US giants to prove a point after some of the barbs directed towards Disney by their CEO. This might be an opportunity that they could jump on, though I'm not sure it would necessarily be a "wise" opportunity.

Anyway, just my two cents on the issue.

 

[Mr. EPCOT]

I would love to see Herschend or Cedar Fair buy a nice wooded hilly piece of land in Lake County and build something like Dollywood or Busch Gardens Williamsburg.

 

[Scott W.]

I would love to see Herschend or Cedar Fair buy a nice wooded hilly piece of land in Lake County and build something like Dollywood or Busch Gardens Williamsburg.

Does Florida have any hilly areas? Florida is about as flat as the Netherlands.

 

[Mr. EPCOT]

Does Florida have any hilly areas? Florida is about as flat as the Netherlands.

A good chunk of Lake County (around Clermont, for example) is very hilly.

 

[Teebin]

A good chunk of Lake County (around Clermont, for example) is very hilly.

Yessuh, drive Rt 27 from 192. I thought I was back in Maine for a moment. Rolling countryside.

 

[Disneyhead]

Britton Hill, just outside of Clermont, is the highest point in the state of FL at a whopping 312' (95 meters) above sea level.

 

[maxairmike]

The area around Bok Tower Gardens is decently hilly as well. 295' above sea level at the Tower, with quite a view out over the Lake Wales area. You don't realize just how high up you are there until you see the view (or see Bok Tower while you're driving down 27 to LEGOLAND).

 

[Galaxy Defender]

This link from WFTV Orlando has both an article and a video segment. It reports the sale of Artegon is being handled by CBRE Orlando, the largest real estate company in the world. They also handled the property Universal bought for its next park. There are multiple quotes from David Hummer of Fun Spot America, who says Fun Spot is excited about the prospect. Fun Spot is right in between Artegon and UO.

Theme park to replace 'for sale' Artegon Marketplace | WFTV

 

[Scott W.]

This link from WFTV Orlando has both an article and a video segment. It reports the sale of Artegon is being handled by CBRE Orlando, the largest real estate company in the world. They also handled the property Universal bought for its next park. There are multiple quotes from David Hummer of Fun Spot America, who says Fun Spot is excited about the prospect. Fun Spot is right in between Artegon and UO.

Theme park to replace 'for sale' Artegon Marketplace | WFTV

Could Fun Spot be the outsider?

 

[bob albert]

I forgot about Kalahari. They could definitely bring something new to the region. The prices are pretty high to stay at their locations and they seem well booked.