Will this really work?

[kevinashe]

I think a park of classic static rides can survive very well and can be tiedc into a lot of other classic events.I have always said the full site should be retained but not neccessary built on at the one time,there will be many more classic rides(both here and in america)needing rescuing over future years and its always better to have extra space

[Jim Douglas Jr.]

Well, it might be a done deal. There's always a way creatively re-arrange.

[Nick]

Our proposals for Dreamland are the first of a kind, so we cannot be 100% certain what will happen as it is an untested format.

I have always believed that we have really strong chance of succeeding by building the first ever amusement park of historic rides because what we are doing is different. We could have continued down the road of 'modern seaside amusement park', which is where the Save Dreamland Campaign started all those years ago, but there are so many other parks doing the same thing. Why compete to be the same? And then there are the theme parks, such as Thorpe Park and Legoland, against which we couldn't possibly hope to compete. Again, why even bother? In my view, even by allowing a small number of modern rides into the site, we lose that point of difference - that USP - which makes it harder to sell the concept to the public. As things stand at the moment, we have a genuinely unique project, which is really easy to explain to people (and the media). By being different, we stand a real chance of capturing the imagination. By diluting it I fear that we may have more difficulty getting Dreamland back on the centre stage.

But we are not complacent. Over the past few weeks we have been 'double checking' the business plan we produced at the time of our grant applications by appointing a completely independent consultancy, that has had no previous connection with the project but has loads of experience of running successful tourist attractions. When we appointed them to have a second look at our business plan, we told them to tell us the truth. The last thing we want is consultants telling us what they think we want to hear. We want to be told if there is likely to be a problem.

These consultants have done a staggering amount of work. This includes a detailed assessment of the catchment area and very thorough benchmarking by interviewing the owners of other seaside amusement parks and looking at the truth behind the published figures. This has proved an incredible insight into this specialist industry.

The report has not yet been published, and at this stage I cannot really talk about its contents, as it needs to be approved by our board. But I have seen the draft report and suffice to say, we are not likely to be throwing in the towel just yet.

Even with such a detailed study, we still cannot be absolutely certain. But we have to give it a go, especially when the signs are that we have something that (unlike a lot of heritage attractions) is commercially viable and will not require a ongoing subsidy. And if we do fail to capture the imagination, we can still open our gates and be just as successful as Funland (Hayling Island), Fort Fun (Eastbourne), Harbour Park (Littlehampton), Clarence Pier (Southsea) and all the other south coast parks that don't have a high profile, but are solid businesses nonetheless.

Regarding the size of Dreamland, at around 8.5 acres we will actually be one of the largest seaside amusement parks in the country. We are smaller than Blackpool Pleasure Beach, about the same size as Great Yarmouth Pleasure Beach and Adventure Island at Southend. We are bigger than every other seaside park.

An earlier post mentioned the fact that Southend Adventure Island was able to expand, but we will not have that luxury. Adventure Island expanded from a tiny park to a site that is similar to the area that we will have available. It is good management and creative use of space that are the secret to Adventure Island's success (not to mention a fantastic location), and we do not expect to come close to Adventure Island's visitor numbers. But just like Adventure Island, we will need to change. We will, of course, have some key attractions that will never change, just as Blackpool Pleasure Beach and Adventurer Island do, but there is no reason why we cannot replace some rides with 'new' historic rides that become available so that the line-up changes annually or bi-annually. And as Jim correctly states, we will have a constantly changing programme of events and other supporting attractions that will make Dreamland a place that can be visited time and time again.

We have just the same ability as any other seaside park to change our line-up and keep the attraction fresh. (Come to think of it, I don't know of any that actually have genuine expansion land so it would be unreasonable of us to expect it).

I am confident that Dreamland Margate will quickly regain its position as one of the most prominent attractions in the south east when it reopens.

[Jim Douglas Jr.]

It seems Dreamland was just getting by, so some fresh thinking and a bit of a different approach should put it back in the black.
It was running on an outdated business model and a shadow of it's former self, and still managing to barely get by.
With the right staff, unique attractions (and events) and a small army of volunteers, it should be a success.

[Chris H]

The other 50% of land should still be reserved until the heritage project has gained funds and is able to expand.

Only once it has been proven that an amusment park on 100% of the site is not viable should other uses be considered for the other half. More housing is not a way of boosting Margates local economy but just simply an initial one off cash injection.

[Jim Douglas Jr.]

Yup.
Once the buildings are built, then there are more people and still too few jobs.

[Vince, Charlie and Sam]

Yup.
Once the buildings are built, then there are more people and still too few jobs.

Whatever the future of Dreamland, I doubt that there will be any housing development on the site in the foreseeable future. The developers' plans were formulated when we had a booming economy and property investment was seen as a one-way bet.

Seven years on, the economic situation is very different. Property values are in decline and are predicted to fall further over the coming years, while building materials are becoming ever more expensive.

There are widespread job losses locally- just a fortnight ago Pfizer announced the closure of its Sandwich headquarters with the loss of 2400 jobs- this will probably lead to a further 1600 job losses among contractors, many of whom live in Thanet.

Our problems mirror those of yours in the US, we are simply a couple of years behind in the economic cycle.

For many people, foreign holidays are a thing of the past and there is a renaissance in British seaside holidays. As oil prices continue to climb this trend is bound to continue.


The intended developers made the mistake of reading the market wrongly, as Dreamland becomes more viable by the day. I have no doubt that they can see this now and that when Dreamland re-opens that they will be eager to discuss future profitable use for their idle land.

[Jim Douglas Jr.]

Let's hope that once DL reopens, it's able to take the other half back and really make something of itself again.