"We had to make sure everything at the back of the house was completely renovated" - infrastructure, buildings, equipment and other facilities. "You would not want to work in those conditions," he said. Watch Video: Lightning Run at Kentucky Kingdom gets cheers Hart, who has developed a reputation for revitalizing troubled theme parks, said the premises "were run down and dirty" and it cost $6 million just to clean up the place. Several plans to reopen the park then fell through, before the fair board and Hart struck a deal on a new lease last year. The park was abandoned in February 2010 after bankrupt Six Flags' request to pay for use of the park grounds only if it turned a profit was rejected by the Kentucky State Fair Baord. The park - scene of a 2007 accident in which a girl's feet were severed while riding the now-gone Superman Tower of Power - was last open in 2009. It also will generate $500,000 a year in new hotel room-tax revenue for the Louisville Convention & Visitors Bureau, according to the study. VIDEO | Lightning Run gets raves from coaster enthusiastsĪ consultant hired by the Kentucky Tourism Cabinet estimated the park will provide a $3 billion local economic boost over 20 years and generate nearly $225 million in new tax dollars for state and local governments in that time. MORE | Kentucky Kingdom has more attractions for kids Its re-opening adds to our significant momentum and will be a strong new draw for regional visitors." "The park was one of our top tourist attractions in the past, and we know it will be again. "Kentucky Kingdom will have a big impact on our city, from both a tourism and jobs perspective," said Mayor Greg Fischer. He and others agree: There is a lot riding on its success. Kentucky Kingdom CEO Ed Hart, who has owned the park previously, said his ownership group has trained about 800 youths for jobs at the park, sold more than 80,000 season tickets, implemented a solid security plan and renovated 50-plus acres of space at the Kentucky Exposition Center.
"We are giving them a hometown theme park, so they won't have to spend $25 on gas" to drive to Kings Island north of Cincinnati or to Holiday World in Santa Claus, Ind. "We're giving the community a new place to play," said park spokesman John Mulcahy. A little less than a year after taking control of a "run down and dirty" Kentucky Kingdom, the amusement park's new ownership group says the facility, with a $44.3 million restoration, is set for its much-anticipated reopening Saturday.
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