The Bayou Phoenix development group has signed a lease with the New Orleans Redevelopment Authority (NORA) and taken control of the former Six Flags site.
Bayou Phoenix’s plan for the 227-acre site, which was approved earlier this year, features hotels, a water park, a youth sports facility, an amphitheater, retail outlets, an 8.5-acre man-made lake, and a movie studio.
The 50-year lease with NORA, which owns the land, includes development milestones such as a sublease in place with an operator for at least one element of the project by 25 October 2024.
“Transformational project” to begin
With the lease signed, Bayou Phoenix will now need to secure funding and partners to operate the reimagined park‘s attractions. The developer will also have to clean out the site and remove any abandoned rides.
“We are pleased after 30-plus months of pursuit to finally be able to get started on this transformational project,” Troy Henry, Bayou Phoenix’s team leader told Biz New Orleans.
Project costs have been estimated at between $500 million and nearly $1 billion. City, state and federal sources are expected to contribute $100m, with the remaining funds coming from private investors and loans.
Lease with development milestones
“Our team has completed the feasibility analysis of this effort with very exciting results – and as a resident of New Orleans East, I believe that this project will be transformational for the entire region,” Henry said earlier this year.
First opened as Jazzland in 2000, the abandoned theme park was acquired by Six Flags in 2002. The group invested $20m in upgrades and reopened the park as Six Flags New Orleans in 2003.
However, after Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Six Flags New Orleans did not reopen. The site has been held since 2009 by the Industrial Development Board (IDB). Bayou Phoenix was selected as the developer for the park in October 2021.
