The Mountaineer, a North Carolina journal, reports, "... plans are in the works to take Ghost Town to Miami — a move expected to generate revenue that will help boost the 2010 season in Maggie and keep certain workers employed through the winter. M Point Productions, the Miami-based company who brought the House of Terror to Ghost Town this fall, is in negotiations with city officials trying to nail down a deal to build a replica of Ghost Town in Miami as a limited time winter attraction. M Point’s CEO Peter Regalado Abad said if all goes according to plan, construction will begin in Miami next month in preparation of a February opening. Plans call for a short stint in Miami, February through March, so entertainers and employees can return to Maggie in time to prepare for the slated May 14 park opening."
Who is Peter Abad or Peter Regalado? An anonymous source informs us, "(Shiver) brought him in to finance all merchandise at the park on a shared revenue basis. Then, about 60 days ago, Peter took over cash control of the park, upsetting many. ... It appears that Peter is going to finance a 3 million dollar plan to build a Ghost Town main street replica out of cargo containers in Miami. This will provide year round employment for these Ghost Town employees as they can travel between the attractions. I am sure that he is anxious to get back to his stomping grounds as all of the power and water have been shut off in Maggie Valley due to lack of payment and hundreds of employees left unpaid. North Carolina needs a break from Shiver. He has done an impressive amount of damage to folks here over the past year. Now it is your turn to take him back for a while."To read the full article from The Mountaineer, click 'read more'.
At season’s end, Ghost Town debates next steps
WRITTEN BY BETH PLEMING
THURSDAY, 12 NOVEMBER 2009 19:17
As Ghost Town in the Sky closes its gates on another season, park officials admit they’ve seen better days. But they haven’t lost hope.
Taking inventory of the list of accomplishments that have been overcome since the park’s 2006 resurrection, officials said they feel a great sense of accomplishment looking back on the 2009 season. Yet they also know the show isn’t over yet.
While the future remains unclear, Ghost Town CEO Steve Shiver said he isn’t giving up. He remains hopeful that despite the challenges ahead, the park will survive.
Much depends on how a federal bankruptcy judge rules on the park’s reorganization plan, which sets forth a plan and timeline for paying off all unsecured creditors. Park leaders submitted an initial draft of the plan last month to meet the required deadline but are in the process of modifying that plan. A revised plan will be submitted in coming weeks for a judge’s consideration.
If approved, a copy of the plan will then be sent to creditors for their review, said Shiver. Creditors will have 30 days to comment before the plan comes back to the judge for a confirmation hearing.
“There are several potential outcomes that could result from the confirmation hearing,” he said. “Either the judge approves the plan for reorganization and allows us the opportunity to reopen the park, which will allow us the opportunity to capitalize on our hard work this year and open the park next season with everything operable for the first time. Being open will also allow us to generate income over the next several years, which will enable us to pay back our creditors. Otherwise, the judge changes our plan or certain components of our plan or forces a liquidation.”
In the case of liquidation, it is likely that only the secured creditor, BB&T, will see the money they are owed.
Shiver did not want to discuss details of the plan at this time because he said most of the plan is being tweaked, and the details are going to change.
His faith in the park’s future is based upon progress made to date in light of little marketing. With additional advertising dollars being spent to market the park and every component of the park in full operation, Shiver expects to see a significant boost in numbers.
“The big key here is proper marketing. This year all our efforts have been focused on improving the park, and the facility is in better condition than it ever has been in its history. Next season, marketing efforts will be restored and our focus will shift in part to ramping up efforts to get people here,” he said. “Lord willing, if our plan is approved, we still have years of work to execute the plan we have in place for the park long term. But I am more confident today of our staff, our facility and our direction than I have ever been since we acquired the park in 2006.”
Meanwhile, plans are in the works to take Ghost Town to Miami — a move expected to generate revenue that will help boost the 2010 season in Maggie and keep certain workers employed through the winter.
M Point Productions, the Miami-based company who brought the House of Terror to Ghost Town this fall, is in negotiations with city officials trying to nail down a deal to build a replica of Ghost Town in Miami as a limited time winter attraction.
M Point’s CEO Peter Regalado Abad said if all goes according to plan, construction will begin in Miami next month in preparation of a February opening. Plans call for a short stint in Miami, February through March, so entertainers and employees can return to Maggie in time to prepare for the slated May 14 park opening.
18 comments:
Peter Regalado - Tomas Regalado
Any relation?
http://www.themountaineer.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4685:beth-pleming&catid=25:the-project&Itemid=27
(Above a follow-up article in their local newspaper.) The article quotes several employees stating they happily chose to work without pay. It doesn't mention employees who were bullied and manipulated, those who were fired simply for requesting a day off in the last weeks of park operation or complaining for lack of pay.
If the park plans to take the show on the road to Miami will the bankruptcy judge allow assets to be removed from the park property? As debtors in possession park management has a fiduciary responsibility to the creditors.
Bring me the head of Peter Regalado.
I hope they don't plan to put this on Virginia Key. That seems to be the dumping ground for all these wacko ideas. Or maybe they are eyeing the old jetport site in the Everglades?
Peter is no relation to Tomas.
Why bother building a Ghost Town replica out of cargo containers in Miami? Just go to the City of Homestead where there are plenty of real abandon ghost towns - courtesy of Shiver, Sergio Pino, Lennar and the rest of the Florida Growth Machine! I heard Shiver was actually seeking Federal Stimulus funding for this venture.
"If it were easy everybody would be doing it."
ANY Regalado is a NO GOOD Regalado.
I hope the FBI is reading this blog.
HAHHAHAHAH.
Dang. I should have made that 2,000,000 dollar bet at the swearing ceremony after the Homestead election.... I would have won.
Homestead is a City of Terror. You can forget the house part thanks to Steve and his clients. Next big thing will be a sister park called Section 8 Funhouse.
There absolutely is a relation....
Long ago Bill Losner used to rant and rave about needing more development to get rid of the stigma of Section 8 housing in Homestead and Florida City. Now after the boom that made him millions, that's all Homestead and Florida City got. The people of Homestead should claw back all those earnings.
The Smoky Mtn News reports:
As Ghost Town heads toward its first big showdown in bankruptcy court next week, objections from those owed money are beginning to pile up.
Ghost Town, an Old West amusement park in Maggie Valley, recently filed a disclosure statement and reorganization plan, which are supposed to outline how it intends to pull out of bankruptcy — presumably making enough profit to repay its debts.
However, Ghost Town failed to include profit and loss statements, back tax filings or basic financial projections as part of its disclosure statement. Objections over the spotty disclosure statement were filed by several parties owed money, including the Haywood County Tax Collector, Mountain Energy and BB&T, the mortgage holder on the property.
Some 200 businesses, many of them local contractors and small businesses in the region, are collectively owed more than $2.4 million. They are at the bottom of the list to be repaid. The reorganization plan calls for paying back only 25 percent of what the businesses are owed over a seven year period using a portion of net profits.
In an objection, BB&T said such a claim was disingenuous. Since Ghost Town’s current owners have never turned a profit, it is possible the businesses owed money would never get a dime, BB&T wrote in its objection.
Ultimately, everyone owed money will get to vote on whether to accept the reorganization plan or force Ghost Town into a liquidation — namely selling off the mountaintop property to the highest bidder and using the proceeds to pay off the debt.
In the disclosure statement, CEO Steve Shiver encouraged everyone owed money to vote yes, claiming they likely won’t see a dime if the park is liquidated, since it won’t fetch enough to pay off all the debt.
Comments?
"...paying back 25% of what businesses are owed over a seven year period using a portion of net profits?" Profit under Shiver's management?
Seems closing the park would at least prevent the accumulation of more creditors. What about current debts accrued since filing Chapter 11?
What these debtors don't know is that Steve left the park exactly the way that it was on the last operating day. Rides were not winterized, nor were any of the buildings. The assets are deteriorating every day to the point of being worthless. Nice work.
Without any electric power the aircraft warning lights are not burning on the high rides. Isn't this an FAA violation?
Could be disasterous!
No power, no water, a mudslide making the drive to the top of the mountain impossible at this time, the carousel crushed by the snow, lack of opening capital AGAIN, and yet the man gets an extension by the bankruptcy court so that he can try to raise $300,000 by May 31st so that he can once again open this broken down, dilapidated theme park that is an embarrassment to Maggie Valley. The pied piper is playing his flute once again and people are following him still, straight to the river.
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