Dollywood?

[laserdisque]

Found this on the city-data forum.

My company is doing some work for Dollywood’s next expansion which will include another roller coaster in 2022. I can’t give out any more information, but there’s some big plans for Dollywood. We’ve also been working with a developer that wants to open up a new Midwest theme park. It will be very comparable to OWA in South Alabama. Possible locations is Sioux Falls, Rapid City, Omaha, or Lincoln. This is in the very early stages with feasibility studies being done on possible locations.

[Linkin5]

It’s pretty crazy that Omaha/Lincoln area doesn’t have a legitimate amusement park considering it’s size. Hopefully something comes out of this.

[Doctor Fate]

The website says that OWA is 520 acres....that is pretty big. I wonder where an amusement park would go in Omaha? Omaha is larger than Lincoln, Rapid City, and Sioux Falls combined so one would think it would be the frontrunner.

[ita]

The website says that OWA is 520 acres....that is pretty big. I wonder where an amusement park would go in Omaha? Omaha is larger than Lincoln, Rapid City, and Sioux Falls combined so one would think it would be the frontrunner.

Rapid City actually makes a lot of sense because it's location in the Black Hills. The area gets millions of visitors every year. There are a lot of existing tourist attractions though. Maybe Omaha/Lincoln will seriously be considered because its relative size in addition to Omaha being a pretty big event/convention town. Anyway, this is all conjecture for now unless this thing has teeth. Maybe Chip Davis will have a Manheim Steamroller Coaster at Dollywood Nebraska.

[Brad]

I'm sure if we ever get an amusement park, it will be somewhere between Omaha and Lincoln on I80... Which ever city or county gives out the most money.

[S.O.Boy]

I'm sure if we ever get an amusement park, it will be somewhere between Omaha and Lincoln on I80... Which ever city or county gives out the most money.

A good spot could be out by the Safari Park and the museum.

[Greg S]

The website says that OWA is 520 acres....that is pretty big. I wonder where an amusement park would go in Omaha? Omaha is larger than Lincoln, Rapid City, and Sioux Falls combined so one would think it would be the frontrunner.

Rapid City actually makes a lot of sense because it's location in the Black Hills. The area gets millions of visitors every year. There are a lot of existing tourist attractions though. Maybe Omaha/Lincoln will seriously be considered because its relative size in addition to Omaha being a pretty big event/convention town. Anyway, this is all conjecture for now unless this thing has teeth. Maybe Chip Davis will have a Manheim Steamroller Coaster at Dollywood Nebraska.

Yeah Rapid City would definitely be a good spot. Was in that area for vacation last summer for the first time and was absolutely blown away with how much stuff there was to do. Add an amusement park and we would have added another day.

Greg

[Omaha Cowboy]

Time to give our “friend” Larry Minard a call ..

…

Ciao..LiO…Peace

[TitosBuritoBarn]

As a kid, I really really wanted a legit theme park in Omaha. I saw Worlds of Fun and Six Flags through rose colored glasses given that Omaha has no such theme park at all. But now, having lived in two different cities over the past decade with a Six Flags location, I have been to only one of those Six Flags one time. I think its from seeing how immersive the theme park experience can be from Disney and Universal parks. Six Flags definitely phones in the immersive theming and, while I've never been there, Dollywood seems to be around the same level as Six Flags.

That's to say I couldn't care less anymore if Omaha gets a theme park because I'm pessimistic it'll have much in the way of quality theming.

[djc311]

That's to say I couldn't care less anymore if Omaha gets a theme park because I'm pessimistic it'll have much in the way of quality theming.

What's wrong with a theme park "themed" around the Teletubbies or The Wiggles???

All joking aside, when I was a kid I thought a midwest location of a Disney park would be amazing. However, as I grew up I realized they'd never consider it because it would have to close for at least 25% of the year or more due to climate.

Just think, though - how cool would it be to see a life-sized AT-AT in a Star Wars park?

[TitosBuritoBarn]

That's to say I couldn't care less anymore if Omaha gets a theme park because I'm pessimistic it'll have much in the way of quality theming.

What's wrong with a theme park "themed" around the Teletubbies or The Wiggles???

All joking aside, when I was a kid I thought a midwest location of a Disney park would be amazing. However, as I grew up I realized they'd never consider it because it would have to close for at least 25% of the year or more due to climate.

Just think, though - how cool would it be to see a life-sized AT-AT in a Star Wars park?

There almost was one. It would have been called Walt Disney's Riverfront Square and located in a multi-level dome structure in downtown St. Louis. Apparently the mayor at the time didn't want to help fund it and Auggie Busch thought Disney was crazy for wanting to build a theme park and not sell beer there. So, without local investment and feeling somewhat embarrassed, Disney decided to turn more attention to his plans in Florida:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walt_Disn ... ont_Square

[Garrett]

That's to say I couldn't care less anymore if Omaha gets a theme park because I'm pessimistic it'll have much in the way of quality theming.

What's wrong with a theme park "themed" around the Teletubbies or The Wiggles???

All joking aside, when I was a kid I thought a midwest location of a Disney park would be amazing. However, as I grew up I realized they'd never consider it because it would have to close for at least 25% of the year or more due to climate.

Just think, though - how cool would it be to see a life-sized AT-AT in a Star Wars park?

There almost was one. It would have been called Walt Disney's Riverfront Square and located in a multi-level dome structure in downtown St. Louis. Apparently the mayor at the time didn't want to help fund it and Auggie Busch thought Disney was crazy for wanting to build a theme park and not sell beer there. So, without local investment and feeling somewhat embarrassed, Disney decided to turn more attention to his plans in Florida:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walt_Disn ... ont_Square

They also somewhat tried it with those big oversized arcades, DisneyQuest, in Chicago and Orlando.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DisneyQuest

[ita]

I guess I misread the original post. Dollywood is expanding and another them park developer is thinking about a midwest location. I was thinking Dolly wanted a second location.

[Doctor Fate]

That's to say I couldn't care less anymore if Omaha gets a theme park because I'm pessimistic it'll have much in the way of quality theming.

What's wrong with a theme park "themed" around the Teletubbies or The Wiggles???

All joking aside, when I was a kid I thought a midwest location of a Disney park would be amazing. However, as I grew up I realized they'd never consider it because it would have to close for at least 25% of the year or more due to climate.

Just think, though - how cool would it be to see a life-sized AT-AT in a Star Wars park?

There is a life sized AT-AT on the Rise of the Resistance ride at Disneyland, probably one at Disney World too. It is super cool because you go through these doors on the ride and it is just right there in this hangar.

[nebport5]

That's to say I couldn't care less anymore if Omaha gets a theme park because I'm pessimistic it'll have much in the way of quality theming.

What's wrong with a theme park "themed" around the Teletubbies or The Wiggles???

All joking aside, when I was a kid I thought a midwest location of a Disney park would be amazing. However, as I grew up I realized they'd never consider it because it would have to close for at least 25% of the year or more due to climate.

Just think, though - how cool would it be to see a life-sized AT-AT in a Star Wars park?

There almost was one. It would have been called Walt Disney's Riverfront Square and located in a multi-level dome structure in downtown St. Louis. Apparently the mayor at the time didn't want to help fund it and Auggie Busch thought Disney was crazy for wanting to build a theme park and not sell beer there. So, without local investment and feeling somewhat embarrassed, Disney decided to turn more attention to his plans in Florida:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walt_Disn ... ont_Square

Back around the time when Disney was pursuing the American History theme park they were also looking at land in Wisconsin. I don't know if it was for that project particularly or another but interesting considering theme parks and climate.

[Huskerfan1]

Lincoln was cut off the list. That leaves Omaha, RC, and SF. A park in Omaha would be competing with KC and DM. SF doesn’t have the population and tourist draw. What worked for Dolly by the Smoky Mountains could work for someone else by the Black Hills. A Park in RC could actually boost the number of people who visit the Black Hills. Short season though.

[ita]

Lincoln was cut off the list. That leaves Omaha, RC, and SF. A park in Omaha would be competing with KC and DM. SF doesn’t have the population and tourist draw. What worked for Dolly by the Smoky Mountains could work for someone else by the Black Hills. A Park in RC could actually boost the number of people who visit the Black Hills. Short season though.

Are you the person quoted from the city-data post? Welcome to the forum and thanks for the information. So, site selection is really between Omaha and RC? RC makes a lot of sense, but Omaha gets it's own fair share of visitors from the CWS and other sports events and conventions. Additionally, if you talk to the people on the local reddit page, there is nothing to do here. I am being sarcastic, but I think people would flock to a theme park, if done right. A theme park would compete with Vala's in the fall, but spring and summer, it would have the attention of the 1.3 million people that live between the Omaha and Lincoln metros. The state is looking into a large reservoir in the area in response to the 2019 flooding. Maybe a lakeside theme park there would work well?

[Huskerfan1]

Feasibility research is currently be conducted. A RC location would be the most costly park with a wilderness and mountain village theme. Like OWA, there will be different districts…a shopping and restaurant district, entertainment district, and amusement area. An Omaha park, like RC, would also have districts and would be very similar to OWA, with far less theming than RC. As for SF, that would be the least expensive option and would be similar to The Islands in Pigeon Forge, TN. This would be geared towards the SF sports tournament tourist. SF and RC both have resort hotels included, but Omaha will not. The developer has lots of experience in the theme park industry and have the capital to build a quality park unlike S.Minard.

[Garrett]

Found this on the city-data forum.

My company is doing some work for Dollywood’s next expansion which will include another roller coaster in 2022. I can’t give out any more information, but there’s some big plans for Dollywood. We’ve also been working with a developer that wants to open up a new Midwest theme park. It will be very comparable to OWA in South Alabama. Possible locations is Sioux Falls, Rapid City, Omaha, or Lincoln. This is in the very early stages with feasibility studies being done on possible locations.

Do you have a link to the post? Tried finding it but couldn’t see it in any of the places I’d expect

[laserdisque]

Found this on the city-data forum.

My company is doing some work for Dollywood’s next expansion which will include another roller coaster in 2022. I can’t give out any more information, but there’s some big plans for Dollywood. We’ve also been working with a developer that wants to open up a new Midwest theme park. It will be very comparable to OWA in South Alabama. Possible locations is Sioux Falls, Rapid City, Omaha, or Lincoln. This is in the very early stages with feasibility studies being done on possible locations.

Do you have a link to the post? Tried finding it but couldn’t see it in any of the places I’d expect

It is in this thread.

https://www.city-data.com/forum/travel/ ... dance.html

[Huskerfan1]

Park preliminary budgets: RC 350m, Omaha 270m, SF 150m. Next cut coming soon, most likely before the end of the year.

[Garrett]

Park preliminary budgets: RC 350m, Omaha 270m, SF 150m. Next cut coming soon, most likely before the end of the year.

Looks like the OWA you mentioned was $240m. Interesting.

[ita]

Park preliminary budgets: RC 350m, Omaha 270m, SF 150m. Next cut coming soon, most likely before the end of the year.

Looks like the OWA you mentioned was $240m. Interesting.

Omaha seems to be the goldilocks pick.

With rough estimates on project cost, have they already considered possible sites in each city? If so, any info where one would be in the Omaha area?

[Garrett]

Park preliminary budgets: RC 350m, Omaha 270m, SF 150m. Next cut coming soon, most likely before the end of the year.

Looks like the OWA you mentioned was $240m. Interesting.

Omaha seems to be the goldilocks pick.

With rough estimates on project cost, have they already considered possible sites in each city? If so, any info where one would be in the Omaha area?

I’d say most likely close to NEX, or maybe Werner Park. OWA is close to an outlet mall, so if we keep that in mind, along with available space, I’d say that’s the most likely.

[Huskerfan1]

Possible sites have been looked at in all three cities. I’m not at liberty to discuss possible sites.

[ita]

Possible sites have been looked at in all three cities. I’m not at liberty to discuss possible sites.

That's all I need to know. Thanks!

[ita]

Park preliminary budgets: RC 350m, Omaha 270m, SF 150m. Next cut coming soon, most likely before the end of the year.

Looks like the OWA you mentioned was $240m. Interesting.

Omaha seems to be the goldilocks pick.

With rough estimates on project cost, have they already considered possible sites in each city? If so, any info where one would be in the Omaha area?

I’d say most likely close to NEX, or maybe Werner Park. OWA is close to an outlet mall, so if we keep that in mind, along with available space, I’d say that’s the most likely.

Yeah, I just looked that up and saw that as well. I guess they could stick it next to NEX. It's next to the highway as well. However, I was under the impression, based on an interview on Grow Omaha with the mayor of Gretna several months ago that he was wanting more like an office park next to NEX, or something like that. I am sure he wouldn't say no to a $270M theme park, but it would change their plans somewhat.

[Huskerfan1]

The next cut was made yesterday, much sooner than expected. That leaves RC and Omaha. The developer wants to explore the possibility of adding more theming to an Omaha location and willing to up the budget to do so. Over the next few months, several theme options will be presented. RC location theme selection has been finalized. At this time, the developer seems to be favoring a RC location. The current goal is to decide by July 1st which city the park will be built in.

[djc311]

A park on the way western edge of Omaha or even between Omaha and Lincoln would be a no brainer. We should be way up the list compared to Rapid City for population reasons alone (Rapid City pop est @ 75k ppl). That's not even taking into account the fact I-80 runs right through there which is the most-traveled east-west HWY in the US.

Plus you have SAC Museum and the other major attractions within a 20-30 min jaunt down 80 (Zoo, CHI Center, Ameritrade Park).

Heck, I don't need to sell the area - but IMO, unless the land is cheap, I don't see the benefit of locating in Rapid City.

[skinzfan23]

A park on the way western edge of Omaha or even between Omaha and Lincoln would be a no brainer. We should be way up the list compared to Rapid City for population reasons alone (Rapid City pop est @ 75k ppl). That's not even taking into account the fact I-80 runs right through there which is the most-traveled east-west HWY in the US.

Plus you have SAC Museum and the other major attractions within a 20-30 min jaunt down 80 (Zoo, CHI Center, Ameritrade Park).

Heck, I don't need to sell the area - but IMO, unless the land is cheap, I don't see the benefit of locating in Rapid City.

100% agree, but Rapid City is probably a much bigger draw for tourists than Omaha.

[Louie]

A park on the way western edge of Omaha or even between Omaha and Lincoln would be a no brainer. We should be way up the list compared to Rapid City for population reasons alone (Rapid City pop est @ 75k ppl). That's not even taking into account the fact I-80 runs right through there which is the most-traveled east-west HWY in the US.

Plus you have SAC Museum and the other major attractions within a 20-30 min jaunt down 80 (Zoo, CHI Center, Ameritrade Park).

Heck, I don't need to sell the area - but IMO, unless the land is cheap, I don't see the benefit of locating in Rapid City.

100% agree, but Rapid City is probably a much bigger draw for tourists than Omaha.

Yeah, I just did a quick search and the Black HIlls draws between 3 and 4 million visitors a year. Omaha doesn't have any attractions of that magnitude. Even the zoos 1-2mm attendance is majorly drawing from the metro itself.

[ita]

A park on the way western edge of Omaha or even between Omaha and Lincoln would be a no brainer. We should be way up the list compared to Rapid City for population reasons alone (Rapid City pop est @ 75k ppl). That's not even taking into account the fact I-80 runs right through there which is the most-traveled east-west HWY in the US.

Plus you have SAC Museum and the other major attractions within a 20-30 min jaunt down 80 (Zoo, CHI Center, Ameritrade Park).

Heck, I don't need to sell the area - but IMO, unless the land is cheap, I don't see the benefit of locating in Rapid City.

100% agree, but Rapid City is probably a much bigger draw for tourists than Omaha.

Initially I thought that Rapid City's tourist draw is a huge differentiator. However, you can find visitor numbers for Mount Rushmore, which is (probably) the biggest attraction near Rapid City. For the last decade, it's had about 2 million visitors. (https://www.nps.gov/moru/learn/manageme ... istics.htm).The Black Hills & Badlands Tourism group reported that between Fall 2019 to Fall 2020, there were about 4 million visitors to the area's national parks and that about $390 million was spent in the region (https://rapidcityjournal.com/news/local ... 5e122.html).

Pretty good, right? Well in 2018, Omaha had 13.1 million visitors who spent a whopping $1.3 billion. 5.7 million stayed overnight, and 7.4 million spent the day (https://www.visitomaha.com/industry/wtl ... 20of%20it.). That's prior to the pandemic. 2020 did a number on Omaha tourism, but it still fared alright. in 2020 there were 3.6 million overnight stays. https://assets.simpleviewinc.com/simple ... c2760c.pdf). With several large events in 2021, those numbers should see a huge boost.

Summarily, unless there are other metrics involved, I think Omaha is just as competitive even in the area of tourism.

[ChadJK]

Also, there's a fairly good chance that if they build it in the Black Hills it's eventually going to burn down. I was just in Rapid City this last April and almost missed seeing Mt. Rushmore due to wildfires.

[ita]

Also, there's a fairly good chance that if they build it in the Black Hills it's eventually going to burn down. I was just in Rapid City this last April and almost missed seeing Mt. Rushmore due to wildfires.

Good point. That's a real risk. Insurance cost plays a big factor into these type of large projects, so it would interesting how that plays into the calculus. Omaha has yearly hail, so maybe insurance costs would be closer than I am thinking.

[Garrett]

Also, there's a fairly good chance that if they build it in the Black Hills it's eventually going to burn down. I was just in Rapid City this last April and almost missed seeing Mt. Rushmore due to wildfires.

Good point. That's a real risk. Insurance cost plays a big factor into these type of large projects, so it would interesting how that plays into the calculus. Omaha has yearly hail, so maybe insurance costs would be closer than I am thinking.

Hail can't be much worse than hurricanes in Florida.

[Huskerfan1]

I appreciate all your support for an Omaha park. I wasn’t expecting any of you to cheer for RC.

In response to “Well in 2018, Omaha had 13.1 million visitors who spent a whopping $1.3 billion. 5.7 million stayed overnight, and 7.4 million spent the day”…those are good numbers and 13.1 visitors sounds good. The problem is that those figures show that visitors aren’t spending much time in the area. A lot of people still think of Omaha as a weekend trip or as a quick day trip. Yes, having a theme park in Omaha could lengthen the time visitors stay, but you have to remember that AL and WoF is not that far away. Many of Omaha’s visitors may have passed them on their trip. Yes, Omaha’s population is bigger than RC, but if a park was built in Omaha, some people would still visit the other parks because they like “getting out of Dodge”. I will explain why RC is currently favored by the developer, but I’ll have to do that later. I need to attend a meeting soon.

[cchandler790]

I hope they pick Omaha to be the candidate. Nebraska has been trying to build a theme park for years for example Port Nebraska but it never came true because Lancaster and either cass or saunders were going back and forth over tax money. When I heard the interview with the owner of Nebraska Crossing he said there would be something big going on across the interstate. That could make some sense, to why he said that. This theme park would be competing with Adventureland, Worlds of Fun, and Loss Island if built here.

[ita]

I appreciate all your support for an Omaha park. I wasn’t expecting any of you to cheer for RC.

In response to “Well in 2018, Omaha had 13.1 million visitors who spent a whopping $1.3 billion. 5.7 million stayed overnight, and 7.4 million spent the day”…those are good numbers and 13.1 visitors sounds good. The problem is that those figures show that visitors aren’t spending much time in the area. A lot of people still think of Omaha as a weekend trip or as a quick day trip. Yes, having a theme park in Omaha could lengthen the time visitors stay, but you have to remember that AL and WoF is not that far away. Many of Omaha’s visitors may have passed them on their trip. Yes, Omaha’s population is bigger than RC, but if a park was built in Omaha, some people would still visit the other parks because they like “getting out of Dodge”. I will explain why RC is currently favored by the developer, but I’ll have to do that later. I need to attend a meeting soon.

We are just realistic. The times we were in the running for getting something new (ahem, Giordano's, a couple auto manufacturing plants, etc.) we got the short end of the stick. We know Omaha's strengths, but also know where its lacking.

Notwithstanding, support for more recreational amenities like a theme park will always be there. While Omaha has it's fair share of entertainment amenities, the clamor for a theme park has been going on for a while (a real one, sorry, Funplex). We lack the amount of choices for natural recreation like hiking or water related stuff, so a theme park would be a welcome addition to the region. And there a couple decent spots for one that would fit the concept of the OWA parks, like the aforementioned Nebraska Crossing Outlets and by the SAC Museum/wildlife safari/state parks area in Ashland. Anyway, with the developer leaning RC, we get it, but any further insight is welcome.

Also you mentioned that if Omaha was chosen, there would be more of theme to it. Any ideas being floated? Is it something that is of regional importance like trains, or something totally unrelated to Omaha?

[TitosBuritoBarn]

I appreciate all your support for an Omaha park. I wasn’t expecting any of you to cheer for RC.

In response to “Well in 2018, Omaha had 13.1 million visitors who spent a whopping $1.3 billion. 5.7 million stayed overnight, and 7.4 million spent the day”…those are good numbers and 13.1 visitors sounds good. The problem is that those figures show that visitors aren’t spending much time in the area. A lot of people still think of Omaha as a weekend trip or as a quick day trip. Yes, having a theme park in Omaha could lengthen the time visitors stay, but you have to remember that AL and WoF is not that far away. Many of Omaha’s visitors may have passed them on their trip. Yes, Omaha’s population is bigger than RC, but if a park was built in Omaha, some people would still visit the other parks because they like “getting out of Dodge”. I will explain why RC is currently favored by the developer, but I’ll have to do that later. I need to attend a meeting soon.

We’re gonna need 3 or 4 theme parks, and/or an overhyped cultural scene before we’re no longer a weekend town.

[Huskerfan1]

The developer is willing to spend more to have more more of a theme at an Omaha location. There are several companies that are in the theming business that will pitch their ideas.

Reasons why RC is favored:

1. Several large properties available with varied terrains

2. Stronger theming possibilities

3. RC retail and entertainment portion would most likely generate more sales offering higher quality tourist shops, local artist shops, themed restaurants, seasonal festivals, etc. Places like Keystone and Hill City have got kind of old, run down, and trashy.

4. A RC theme park could drastically increase the tourist draw to the Black Hills region offering something new and exciting. A theme park would make it easier to attract families to the area.

5. RC area currently doesn’t offer much for visitors to do in the evening and a RC park would offer lots of options. Developer is even interested in building a large amphitheater that would feature an evening, Broadway quality production showcasing the Black Hills and it’s rich history.

6. The RC area offers a huge range of lodging options (camping, cabins, motels, hotels, resorts). One of the drawbacks of Omaha hosting big events, lodging options can be very limited at times.

Not to worry, Omaha is still not out of the running. If a strong, interesting theme can be established for Omaha, the developer may get more excited about building there instead.