It is one of the oldest habitats in the park and needed work. This is a safety improvement for guests as much as anything. Currently children cannot see into the tank without climbing up onto the fence around it. This will allow all guests to see the animals safely from the ground.
The problem is without the GIANT corporation behind them with fingers in dozens of different pies like Disney has and AB had, they are much more vulnerable to these activists.
Sea World is known for being top notch in animal care...The Orcas are the problem....The only issue - the Orcas are the Nike swish of Sea World..It's a sticky and careful situation...I really see Sea World sticking around if they take the next couple of years with careful and calculated measures...People still love to see animals, but not in the same way as the 80's and 90's...This is very reminiscent of Universal in 2008...
Yes, I agree with your astute evaluation. AB would've adapted & fixed any issues that popped up. They were a really good operating corporation. I just loved BGW when they ran it. It was my favorite park. The problem here, though, is that the overseers (Blackstone) that ran Universal into the ground are the same people that control Sea World. And there's no Harry Potter miracle on the horizon.
I agree, Blackstone is the issue here - not Sea World..I think a Harry Potter will come in the way of a coaster for SW or Busch to be perfectly honest...I remember when ShieKra was built for instance, It was new, different and boosted attendance at Busch to new highs
But they just built arguably the most reliable, comfortable, and mass appealing of that size coaster in the industry and attendance didn't get a huge boost. Part of the reason AB wouldn't have problems if they kept the parks is that they are (especially post merger), a worldwide company that could market the parks anywhere they wanted to. They could have bought rights to a serious IP after seeing the Potter success.
Plus AB would put the profits back into the parks. The parks under them were always in A1 shape. Blackstone sucks the profits out....If GE & Blackstone hadn't done the sale to Comcast, I bet they would have taken all the Hogsmeade profits out, and you would never have seen that money reinvested into the resort with new attractions/hotels/restaurants like Comcast did.The Hulk would be sitting there rusting away.
I imagine Universal would have had its closing ceremony already had Blackstone not sold..They are a terrible company
Yep. The Darth Vader of the corporate world. Unfortunately, most Investment Companies, are like that. They take a business, suck out the profits, use pension funds as their own cash , lay off employees, shut down factories, and then sell off what's left.
I used to hear this phrase where I worked, I found a better place to work. This phrase is the definition of ignorance.
Well I guess it all depends on what specific aspect. As far as how they treat animals the reality is very far from the perception people have based on much of the negative publicity.
I really don't think anyone here is arguing for Sea World to continue what it's doing...The activists have the mic right now..Sea World must bend to their will for a little while, but they can't lose their identity in the process..
You're absolutely right - huge mistake on that one...I think they're in a position of not wanting to tick off their passholders and wanting to move forward from the Blackfish fiasco...I know some people were devastated at the announcement of no more Orca breeding...Blue World would have been great for them, I think they saw it as a huge expendature that wouldn't have fully pleased those still sour from Blackfish...The only way to completely stop the bad PR is to end captivity...They can't release the Orcas into the wild due to them being domesticated, and here we are...
At least something is finally happening. I'm betting Midway Mayhem will be there soon enough with an overview of the construction progress.
