That same year real estate investor
John Marlin of Dallas bought land about 30 minutes north of downtown Houston that he envisioned turning into the area's next Disney-style theme park called
EarthQuest.
But now the fate of Marlin's 1,564-acre tract in Montgomery County that he planned to use for the 500-acre theme park and 1,064-acre residential development will be decided by a U.S. bankruptcy court in Sherman on March 5.
Marlin heads
Whitestone Houston Land, LTD., which filed for the Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. He could not be reached for comment.
But two groups that had been working closely with Marlin in pursuit of the theme park - East Montgomery County Improvement District and Contour Entertainment - are joining forces to try to buy the land and establish a new developer.
The court has set a minimum purchase price of $10 million, which is about half what Marlin originally paid for the land that straddles U.S. 59 near New Caney. Completion of the project is estimated to cost about $500 million.
Not good P.R., but ...
"While not a good public relations move, the bankruptcy sale brings the price down. It could save a substantial amount of money for the project," said
Frank McCardy, the improvement district's CEO.
T
he district, started in 1994 to improve the area's quality of life and create jobs, retains ownership of the park's conceptual and site engineering drawings, which the district purchased for $7.5 million in bond money. The district has also spent an additional $2.5 million on legal and other efforts to move the long-delayed project forward - all of which are being repaid through the district's 1.5-cent sales tax, he said.
He would like to see
Chris Brown, president of Contour Entertainment, act as an assistant developer with funding coming from outside backers.
Contour Entertainment of Van Nuys, Calif., designed the conceptual drawings for the park. It would be seven times larger than AstroWorld, with 50 attractions that stress environmental stewardship. This would include such things as a 12-acre water park made from a retreating glacier to an animal park that includes threatened species and a ride through a land with a fiery volcano and life-sized dinosaurs.
Brown, an ex-Disney designer, believe he has the experience necessary, as his company continues to design projects for Disney as well as a new theme park that he says is opening this year in Mumbai, India.
"Marlin was a residential developer with no theme-park background," McCardy said. "He couldn't get any financial traction in this tough economy."
But now McCardy and Brown believe the financial climate is improving and they have active discussions with potential developers who would be able to write the check, but they said they could not disclose the names.
Seeks Texas investors
Brown would only say he is focused on Texas investors, who would benefit the most from the enhancement of their community and other properties being developed.
"I feel very comfortable," said McCardy, adding that if his preferred developer, Contour, is unsuccessful with fundraising he has two others "ready to step in and build it."
He said he feels good about the project because three theme-park experts have said this spot has perfect demographics. Houston is the only one of the 11 largest U.S. cities without a theme park. Major theme parks are located on each coast but not the central U.S., 18 million people live within a four-hour drive of the site and Houston has a young population with one of the strongest economies.
But with all the false starts, spurts and delays in the last six years, some area residents are skeptical about it ever being built.
cindy.horswell@chron.com
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