Thats true, though also a bit unfortunate. Really amusement parks EVERYWHERE have that same element, its just if one is worse than the other. Six Flags Magic Mountain is in California Gangland USA where they've have a gang MURDER. But it still runs cuz its all about the gate total. Great Adventure in New Jersey is guidos and rude yankees. General amusement parks without a specific theme, some people will come dressed to "represent". A place with SOFT theme like Disney World might make people feel to go more "appropriate".
What kind of practice? Yes, the growth to the west...both directly west out I-10 and southwest towards Ft. Bend puts the population center between Gessner and Beltway 8 on I-10. I've seen more than one study from different sources that shows the very same data.
http://www.click2houston.com/news/J...gedy/-/1735978/17445754/-/5dow88/-/index.html Judge calls amusement park 'taxpayer tragedy' Local 2 Investigates uncovers video, more tax dollars spent on Earthquest Adventures MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Texas - It's the mega-amusement park that was supposed to be Houston's next Astroworld, but Montgomery County Judge Barb Sadler said the project has turned into a taxpayer "tragedy." "Ten million dollars have gone to this project with nothing to show for it but renderings and dreams," Sadler said. The project was called Earthquest Adventures and it was supposed to be built on Highway 59 north near New Caney. Last month, Local 2 Investigates exposed how the East Montgomery County Improvement District (EMCID) spent at least $10 million in taxpayer funds helping develop the amusement park. Five years into the project, the park is no closer to reality than when the plans began. There's no park, no visitors and the developer has gone bankrupt. Sadler has been the top lawmaker in Montgomery County for 22 years. Like many others, he said he hoped the amusement park would bring excitement, jobs and visitors to the county. However, after seeing EMCID Chief Executive Officer Frank McCrady promote the project, Sadler said he determined the Earthquest Adventures dream had little chance of coming true. "There was no credit behind this project," Sadler said. "There was no financial statement and no one with the ability to attain this kind of loan. I would never have done this project from day one." Sadler said he believes taxpayers took on all the risk of the Earthquest Adventures park. Along with the $10 million in taxpayer funds, Local 2 Investigates discovered EMCID donated $649,000 to a now non-existent, nonprofit group called Earthquest Institute. The nonprofit was described as the educational arm of the theme park. Now, Local 2 Investigates has learned even more public money was given to yet another non-profit called the East Montgomery County Development Corporation. The development corporation then loaned $225,000 to amusement park's developer and $295,000 to the nonprofit Earthquest Institute. McCrady is also executive director of the development corporation. None of the money loaned has been paid back. "It was nothing more than a shell game," Sadler said. "It was a way to increase fees, increase salaries and increase cash flow to a developer who knew it would never happen." Local 2 Investigates also obtained a promotional video for Earthquest Adventures paid for by EMCID. The video costs taxpayers $15,000 and includes interviews with McCrady, EMCID board members, paid consultants and the park's designer. "I still think we have a project that is viable," McCrady said during an interview with Local 2 Investigates in September. McCrady said a new developer has until December to raise millions of dollars to buy the land and start the process of planning and building the amusement park project again. However, the developer doesn't want to tell you how that's going -- at least not when Local 2 Investigates asked him about it. In an email to McCrady obtained by Local 2 Investigates, Chris Brown of Contour Entertainment writes, "I have no interest in providing any details of these private business matters to the press. I would request that you respect our efforts to work in a private manner during this time." Sadler said if he or his commissioner's court would have made the same amusement park deal, they'd have been voted out of office. Local 2 Investigates will keep monitoring any progress by the new developer.
It was a crappy concept to begin with. No kid wants to go to an earth themed adventure park. someone's gotta pay for all of this wasted money
This article is from early January, but I just saw it on Channel 2's App: http://www.click2houston.com/news/F...ect/-/1735978/18013702/-/pje7k2z/-/index.html MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Texas - The now infamous fading sign along Highway 59 north in New Caney still touts the mega-theme park that has never come. Local 2 Investigates has learned the proposed amusement park is the center of a federal criminal investigation into the government agency that used taxpayer money to fund its development dreams. Last fall, Local 2 Investigates exposed how the East Montgomery County Improvement District (EMCID) spent more than $10 million tax dollars to help develop Earthquest Adventures. Developers said Earthquest would be an environmentally-friendly, bigger and better version of Astroworld -- including rides, a water park and education. EMCID spent millions of dollars on everything from bonds to amusement park trips. EMCID also made large donations to a now defunct non-profit associated with the park and gave more than $500,000 in loans to other groups related to the park. Those loans will likely never be paid back, because the developer went bankrupt and the land for the park was sold. Now, even more tax money is going to attorneys hired because of the federal criminal investigation. "Anything related to that should be responded to by our attorneys," said Frank McCrady, chief executive officer of EMCID. An attorney hired by EMCID said the U.S. Attorney's office in Houston served subpoenas to EMCID's elected officials and employees all regarding Earthquest. Employees of private companies involved with the project also say they've been interviewed by investigators. Neither the FBI nor the U.S. Attorney's office would confirm or deny any investigation. "I had an interview with the people when that all first started," said Chris Brown, president of Contour Entertainment. Brown was once the lead planner and designer of Earthquest Adventures. Now, he's the new developer in charge of the effort to build the amusement park in East Montgomery County. "I'm obviously an optimist. I've been pushing this thing along despite all kinds of challenges and problems since we were originally asked to move it forward," Brown said. During a recent EMCID board meeting, Brown said the Earthquest project is still alive because the financial markets have improved and he believes investors will line up to fund the $500 million idea. The improvement district board voted to give Brown another six months to secure that funding and then buy the land to start the project over again. "I'm very confident this is going to happen," Brown said. "That's why I keep spending money every month, like an idiot. hoping it's going to happen. If we only raise $150 million, we're going to do a project. We want to raise the whole $500 million. I believe we can." "We have a developer who has a mission to accomplish," McCrady said after the meeting. "Certainly, we are very confident and are placing our faith and trust in the reports we're getting back from our consultants." As of Friday, EMCID is not spending any new tax money on the project. The new developer is paying for all the costs associated with the pre-development. If the project breaks ground and gets final approval, Brown said his company would pay back around $8 million to EMCID.
"We're still alive" http://www.yourhoustonnews.com/humble/news/earthquest-developers-we-are-still-alive/article_cf5fcbd6-0e4e-567e-a4cd-023916fa143d.html?mode=story
