•    Currently, Disney World has officially announced only one major new attraction, based on the popular “America Idol” television show. Slated to open in early 2009, the budget of this new Hollywood Studios offering has been estimated in the $50-$75 million range (Note:  none of the three companies releases official budgets for its attractions—these estimates are based on research and unofficial statements from industry sources).

It would be naïve to think that Disney is not planning any other new additions beyond this stage show.  In fact, rumors of new coasters, mini-theme parks, and dark rides continue to abound.  However, only the single American Idol attraction has been announced.

•    On the other hand, Universal Orlando currently has a major new coaster announced for its Studios park as well as the highly-anticipated Wizarding World of Harry Potter park-within-a-park set to debut in 2010 at Islands of Adventure.  Unofficial estimates peg the Studios roller coaster above $75 million with the Harry Potter land budget easily reaching into the hundreds of millions of dollars. The net result is that Universal Orlando has officially announced attractions totaling nearly 10 times more (in dollars) than Disney World.

•    Meanwhile, Busch recently opened Aquatica, an entirely new waterpark adjacent to its Orlando SeaWorld. Then, in May of this year, the company announced construction of, “Manta,” a Bolliger and Mabillard-designed flying coaster set to debut at SeaWorld in 2009.  Unofficial budget estimates for this custom steel coaster have also come in above $75 million.

"The owner of , one of Europe’s leading theme-park operators, has hired investment bankers to advise on a possible $4.5 billion (£2.3 billion) bid for the American company behind Sea World and Busch Gardens.

Parques is unlikely to have a clear run at the Anheuser business – Merlin Entertainment, owner of Legoland, Alton Towers and Madame Tussauds, will also be interested."

"Merlin Entertainments, which owns Madame Tussauds, Alton Towers, and the London Eye, will have to compete with the biggest theme park business in the world - Disney - in the race to take over the £1.5bn SeaWorld business in Florida."

"Hard Rock Park has laid off 30 employees just months after it opened in Myrtle Beach.

Park officials tell The Sun News of Myrtle Beach that both part-time and full-time employees lost their jobs earlier this week in several different operations at the amusement park."

"The family injured in a water slide accident at Rapids Water Park in Riviera Beach was too heavy for a single raft and signs at the park made that clear, a state inspection report said Friday.

But the park did not properly supervise how the four family members were seated in the raft to best distribute the weight, said the report by the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Affairs, which oversees amusement park rides.

Rapids Water Park disputed that, saying the family's weight so far exceeded the limit that the inspector could not possibly know whether the positioning of the four had any bearing on the accident.

"You can't state that that's the cause unless you test a family the exact same size," said water park spokeswoman Tina Hatcher."

"The report does not answer questions about how much liability the park bears for the safety of patrons who don't follow the posted safety rules. Another report will look at that question, said Department of Agriculture spokesman Terry McElroy.

"In this case, you had people who by their own admission greatly exceeded the weight limit," he said. "The question is, what role and responsibility, if any, does the park have other than putting out warning signs on the ride that these are the weight limits and this is how it is to be distributed."

He added: "People get larger, rides get faster and more thrill-seeking and all of these require all the more vigilance on the part of the patrons to follow instructions and all the more vigilance on the part of the park personnel to see that they are followed."

"The case of the missing bush viper took on the tone of a CSI episode Monday as investigators deepened their probe into how the poisonous reptile went missing.

Twice now, the snake has disappeared from its exhibit at Moody Gardens.

The first time it simply reappeared after a two-day search. On Friday it vanished again and has not been seen since.

Now, Galveston police want answers.

Does someone know what happened to the snake but isn't telling? And did someone tamper with a hasp on the viper's cage?

At least three employees who had contact with the bush viper will be tested on a polygraph machine, Galveston police Detective Michelle Sollenberger said Monday. Others could follow.

Polygraph test results are generally not used in court, Sollenberger said, but they can be helpful in an investigation."

Jefferson Circuit Court Judge Barry Willett ruled Friday that Blair Johnson and Arin Valsted, both of Louisville, may join the case filed by the parents of 14-year-old Kaitlyn Lasitter.
The Courier-Journal reported on its web site that Willett denied a request from the parents of the two teens to join the suit in connection with the accident June 21, 2007.
The parents were seeking damages for emotional distress and travel expenses for providing for their children's care. But Willett said state law does not allow the parents to sue in this case.

ValleyFair has beefed up security inside the Shakopee Amusement Park since a beating incident after the July 4th midnight closing. The park management has beefed up security inside the park. Park officials say that includes more security personnel patrolling and new "no tolerance" policy.

Previously first offenders of park decorum would be given a warning. Now, anyone engaging in any physical infraction faces immediate banning from the park. There have been no such violent incidents reported at ValleyFair since the July 4th attacks.

The coaster project was scrapped in April after state and local permitting delays. Six Flags has acknowledged it bears some responsibility as well. Building Inspector Dominic Urbinati issued a stop-work order on the project on Feb. 20, saying that the park had begun significant construction without a building permit. Without proper construction documents, he said, there was no way he could ensure that the project met state building and safety codes.

In addition to local boards, the permitting reviews included one from the state Department of Public Safety to approve the project's plans for emergency exits and a fire suppression sprinkler system.

[The Mayor] wants the state to streamline the permit process on future projects. A spokesman for the governor's office said the state would work hard to prevent any business from leaving Massachusetts.

Neither Six Flags nor the city of Eureka can be held liable for an accident that killed five family members eight years ago.

The Vonder Haars, visiting from Breese, Ill., were on their way to Six Flags St. Louis on the morning of July 31, 2000, when their vehicle hit a car that had stopped in front of them in a traffic jam about a mile before the park exit. The family car then crossed into the left lanes of Interstate 44 and was hit by a tractor-trailer.
…
Again and again, the court returned to a few basic facts: The accident occurred on a federal highway maintained by MoDOT that Six Flags had no control over. MoDOT's exclusive control of the highway also relieved the city of liability.

Having the hearing under our belts, we are now working on the written public comments, which we will submit to the Department of Justice before the Aug. 17 deadline. We hope IAAPA members will take time to review the proposed regulations and submit comments both to IAAPA and DOJ.

Lara Willey says she was rappelling a climbing wall on Nov. 18, 2006, at Boondocks Fun Center, Inc., when the apparatus supporting her broke, causing her to free-fall about 30 feet to a concrete floor below, according to documents filed this week in 3rd District Court.

Willey, who was 18 at the time, broke her neck, back and pelvis in several places, according to the lawsuit.

The suit claims Boondocks Fun Center provided unsafe equipment on the climbing wall. It also claims Mine Safety Appliances Co., of Pennsylvania, and Select Development and Contracting, of Arizona, is liable for manufacturing and for installing the climbing-wall equipment.