Truths and rumors and details

TRUTH
Mark posted on a possible theme park that may come to Rutherford county.

The company, SafeHarbor Holding, met with officials at Smyrna Town Centre on Friday to discuss possible plans for the park. The developers hope to open the venue somewhere in Middle Tennessee in the next two to three years. Local elected officials were the first to hear a presentation about the $150 million to $200 million theme park.

Armon Bar-Tur, a New York-based project manager for the private enterprise, said the park would be nondenominational and nonevangelical in providing experiences based on the Bible. It could mean 200 to 300 regular jobs and 500 to 1,000 seasonal jobs, he said.
........
It's only going to bring more people to the Blackman area," said Sheila McCord, president of the Blackman Middle Parent Teacher Organization. "We're already bursting at the seams at the Blackman schools. Where is the money going to come from to build the schools for the children that will come with this growth?"

The theme park would be built on between 100 and 300 acres that have not been identified by the developers, Bar-Tur said.

Local officials, however, have talked about the theme park being located on farmland in the Blackman community.

Sounds like it could be a good investment in our county.

RUMOR
For the last year I have heard rumors from people that large chunks of land had been purchased near the almaville road and 840 exit for a new theme park. One relative said that he was told it was going to be a "Disney" themes park. This theme park may be the basis of the rumor that he has talked about.

DETAILS
To get an idea of its size.

Highlights of a proposed Bible Park USA that may be built in Rutherford County:

Project cost: $150 million to $200 million

Number of acres: 200 to 300

Number of regular jobs: 200 to 300

Number of seasonal jobs: 500 to 1,000

Years to build: two to three

Project manager: Armon Bar-Tur, a managing partner with New York based SafeHarbor.

Founder and chief executive officer of Bible Park USA: Ronen Paldi, who's based in Portland, Ore. Paldi also is the founder of Ya'lla Tours USA.