New Orleans former Six Flags park is lastly being demolished 19 years after Hurricane Katrina’s devastation

Demolition is underway on the jap New Orleans website of the decaying advanced of carnival rides and buildings that grew to become an emblem of the 2005 storm’s enduring devastation, The Instances-Picayune/New Orleans Advocate reported.

The park opened in 2000 simply off Interstate 10 as Jazzland Theme Park, however it went bankrupt in two seasons. Six Flags took over the lease, however then Hurricane Katrina struck, flooding the park and far of the town. The theme park by no means reopened, and Six Flags ultimately went bankrupt. Management of the property then went to the Industrial Improvement Board of the Metropolis of New Orleans, which negotiated an settlement with the New Orleans Redevelopment Authority that gave NORA title switch possession of the positioning.

Smoot Building, based mostly in New Orleans, was employed to guide the demolition mission and has began to dismantle the positioning’s many unsalvageable constructions, developer Troy Henry informed the newspaper Monday.

“It’s an excellent factor. It’s a cheerful day,” mentioned Henry, who lives in New Orleans East. “We’re excited in regards to the progress, we’re completely satisfied to see the ball rolling.”

Henry and others are advancing new plans for the land by way of a growth partnership referred to as Bayou Phoenix. The proposals embrace a warehouse and distribution middle, an academic facility run by a neighborhood nonprofit referred to as STEM NOLA, a water park, resort, esports enviornment and a film studio.

Henry mentioned Bayou Phoenix has reached an settlement with one among three “anchor tenants” for the proposed core tasks and talks are persevering with with potential tenants for the remaining two “anchor” tasks. Builders hope to complete these talks by yr’s finish, he mentioned.