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Park News - (3/22/12) Alaska Presley has enlisted the help of her friend Stella Parton (Dolly’s sister) to help with concert events at Ghost Town in the Sky. They’re talking about holding the first one around July 4th and may call it, “Pickin’ in the Parking Lot”. The article also mentions that the park will focus its efforts on repairing the chair lift up to the park, which will cost an estimated $30,000. The incline railway will take longer and will have to wait until next year.
    (3/9/12) While I had hope to see Ghost Town in the Sky revived once again… I’m now a little concerned. In this article, a few details of what the new owner has planned are a quite a bit of a departure from the Ghost Town theme. Presley is planning on gutting the top level of the theme park, removing the Native American village, and moving all the kiddie rides up there to the lower level. She dreams of replacing it all with a “large gold and white concert hall where people can hold religious events or performances” and even eventually crown the top of the mountain with a giant status of Jesus with a similar look to the famous one in Rio.
    Ummmm…. Call me a skeptic, but if he dream is to transform the wild west theme of Ghost Town in the Sky into another Holy Land Experience or a mountain-top version of Heritage USA, I think I’ll pass. Though this will give them a great opportunity to rename the old Red Devil roller coaster once again. Instead of Cliff Hanger, may I suggest Holy Roller?
    (3/1/12) The local news reports that repair work has already begun at Ghost Town in the Sky, though the owner will meet with the NC Dept. of Labor to go over what needs to be done before the park can reopen.
    (2/16/12) A great article can be found at the SmokyMountainNews about how Alaska Presley, age 88, hopes to restore and reopen a profitable Ghost Town in the Sky as her legacy to Maggie Valley. She was the lone bidder at the auction, offering $2.5 million for the park and property, though this itself is more for show than anything. It seems she purchased the entire $10.5 million debt note from BB&T who was more interested in cutting their loss, for just $1.5 million. So as the primary debt holder, the $2.5 million bid will simply come right back to her.
    Her top priority is to try and get the chair lift and incline railway working again, as they are the primary method of transporting guests to the park’s mountain-top location, and were never reopened under the previous group’s efforts. All said the done, there is an estimated $11 million in repairs and restoration that are likely needed to be done, but she plans on not taking out more loans in the immediate future in order to keep the park debt free, and will pay off the projects as she goes.
    As she admits the old “Western” theme is one that is not quite as popular as it once was, there is a need to modernize and change things up at the park, an even mentioned the idea of adding a zipline. Given the remote location, I do have to wonder what Ghost Town can offer to extend their season and put the property to use even in the cooler months of the year.
    (2/7/12) Call me surprised… but according to the local news Ghost Town in the Sky has a new owner. According to the report Alaska Presley helped get the park started more than half a century ago and now has returned to purchase the park’s “bank notes and assets”. While the park goes up for public auction on Feb 10th, that is apparently more of a formality than anything else, and when it’s over, Ghost Town will belong to her. She wants to get the park back up and running to help the people and businesses of Maggie Valley and hopes to have at least one section of the park back open by the end of this season.
    (11/28/11) While Ghost Town in the Sky still sits silently atop the mountain, with the chance of it reopening becoming slimmer with each month that passes, the same infamous urban explorer who took a little visit to Six Flags New Orleans not long ago, also decided to take a visit to Ghost Town in the Sky… which is quickly living up to it’s namesake.
    That is… until the group is approached by one of the park’s former stunt men… who ends up taking them on a guided tour of the rest of the park. Very cool stuff… check it out as this may be the last time anyone gets to see what the park looks like before the ravages of time take their toll.

    (5/17/11) According to Theme Park Tourist, a new plan may be in the works to revive Ghost Town in the Sky in time to reopen for the 2012 season. From the sound of things, but may be a possible bankruptcy auction sale offer of the entire park to a new company, who if freed from the old debts, may be able to revive the park once again. Stay tuned!
    (4/22/11) According to an update at Theme Park Tourist the federal bankruptcy administrator has reported that Ghost Town in the Sky has ‘no chance” or emerging from bankruptcy. A decision is expected within the week about the fate of the park, which will most likely see the property auctioned off to the highest bidder in order to pay of some of the huge $10.5 million debt to BB&T.
    (12/13/10) There isn’t much in the way of new information, but this article does confirm that American Heritage Family Parks is working on a plan to buy Ghost Town in the Sky with the hopes of reopening it for 2011 for the park’s 50th anniversary celebration.
    (10/20/10) There’s been some activity on the business side of things in the area that may pave the way for Ghost Town in the Sky’s revival. According to this article a group called Remodel Auction has signed an agreement to purchase 49% ownership in Al Harper’s railway attraction companies: the nearby Great Smokey Mountain Railroad and the Texas State Railway in Texas. According to the founder of Remodel Auction, “now that we have entered into these agreements we can pursue the acquisition of Ghost Town in the Sky.”
    Al Harper followed this by saying, “I applaud and encourage REMD Management's efforts to acquire Ghost Town in The Sky, which will celebrate its 50 year anniversary if opened in 2011.” “The preservation and successful operation of Ghost Town in the Sky fits with our mission of making American Heritage fun and I wish them all the success in this project. Heritage Tourism is our business and this will be a growth market for years to come.”
    (9/28/10) Bad news for Ghost Town in the Sky, the park is scheduled to be auctioned off on October 25th. The owner of the Smoky Mountain Railroad is making a second attempt to get the financing in place to buy the park before it goes to auction.
    (9/18/10) According to this report the landslide repair around Ghost Town in the Sky will begin in just two weeks. Still no word on the fate of the park however.
    (8/26/10) BB&T has now filed for foreclosure against Ghost Town in the Sky. A hearing is scheduled for Sept. 20th which will likely move it into a auction to sell the park before the end of October. Read all the details here.
    (8/14/10) While driving home from Dollywood the other day I found myself passing by the remains of Ghost Town in the Sky which is as dead as a… well… a Ghost Town.  No trespassing was done, as I only entered the parking lot and walked up to the gift shop and ticket booth areas to snap a few pictures (See Sidebar). The crazy thing is that other than the weeds growing up through the cracks in the parking lot, the place looked like it was just open for business not too long ago. Pens, paper, maps/brochures were still on the counter inside the ticket booth. And merchandise was plentiful on the shelves inside the gift shop. Plus it looks like they had really cleaned up the Blue cable car that was sitting in the parking lot, like they were hoping to use it sooner than later. Such a shame… hopefully this place will get one more chance at life as I’d love to see what the top of the mountain looks like in person.
    (7/27/10) July is nearly at a close… and as predicted, Ghost Town In The Sky is still closed. According to this latest news article, the proposed buyout of the park from Al Harper has fallen through as well, leaving the park still in bankruptcy.
    (7/13/10) It’s mid July now… so you may be wondering just what is going on with Ghost Town In The Sky. The answer, unfortunately, is not a whole hell of a lot. According to this article it has been confirmed that the park will not open this season at all as the effort was too much in the time remaining to not only fix and reopen the park’s attractions, but also repair the retaining walls where the mudslide earlier this year started.
    Work on cleaning up and repair the slide damage really hasn’t even started as ther are still waiting for the state engineers to sign off on the repair plan this Friday. That will finally open the job bidding process for the $1.4 million job of cleaning up and fixing the mess, most of which will be paid by the federal government.
    (5/14/10) A nice long article about the whole financial situation at Ghost Town In The Sky that led to it’s failure and how Harper plans on reviving the park under his leadership can be found here.
    (5/5/10) A judge has approved a bid by a new owner to take over Ghost Town in The Sky. American Heritage Family Parks, LLC have offered to pay $7.3 million to several creditors owed money. As part of the agreement, the park will be allowed to open for the 2010 season while the deal is hammered out and approved. Of course they’ll have to solve the mudslide problem first...
    (4/22/10) According to this news report one of the primary owners of Ghost Town In The Sky is seeking to buy the rest of the park out of bankruptcy under a new company, while hoping to walk away from $5 million in debt from the old company. A hearing is slated to take place on May 4th. If not approved, the park is facing foreclosure on May 31st.
    The new potential owner is Al Harper, who also owns the Great Smokey Mountains Railroad as well as other railway attractions elsewhere in the country. Harper has already formed a new LLC company called American Heritage to handle the venture which is offering to buy the park for $7.5 million. Ghost Town is currently $13.5 million in the hole.
    (3/12/10) This news article confirms our report that Ghost Town in the Sky could go into foreclosure in early June unless they get a much needed infusion of cash. According to the park’s bankruptcy attorney, the park also doesn’t have any funding to ever open for the 2010 season. BB&T is calling for a quick liquidation of the park to help pay off some part of the $9.5 million loan they issued, and Ghost Town has already agreed to let them start the procedure… but not before June 1st to give them one last chance of finding new funding. Make the jump to read even more details about the park’s various debts.
    (3/6/10) I’ve been told that BB&T has now given Ghost Town in the Sky a May 31st deadline to come up with $300,000 or else they will begin the foreclosure process on the park. It looks like Ghost Town may very well become… well… a ghost town again.
    (3/5/10) A reader sent in a tip that when trying to call Ghost Town in the Sky both the direct and 800 numbers (800-GHOST-TOWN) are coming up as being disconnected. Not a good sign.
    (2/18/10) Creditors owed money by Ghost Town in the Sky will soon vote on the fate of the theme park, deciding if it will be given another chance to succeed or be forced into liquidation. On another interesting side note, Ghost Town had been behind in making their liability insurance payments over the past several months, though they did manage to finally make a payment and get caught up three days after the mudslide.
    (2/12/10) According to this report an engineer believes that last week’s mudslide could have been twice as bad had it not been for the proactive work of the Ghost Town In The Sky amusement park who had been trying to fix the problem site over the past couple of years.
    (2/10/10) The latest report about the mudslide next to Ghost Town in the Sky claims that the retaining wall that gave way at Ghost Town near the origin of the half-mile wide mudslide was actually just repaired by a contractor back in 2007 and 2008. They have not pinpointed the cause of the actual slide however, saying that the wall’s failure only “contributed material” to the event. There is some question about if the work done was ever inspected by the state or not however. More rain expected later this week could also cause more problems for the area around Rich Cove Road.
    I’ve also been told by a local source that regardless of what happens from here, this is going to cause a major problem for the theme park, as Rich Cove Road is said to be the only way anyone can drive up to the theme park itself. With the road out of action, there simply is no access to the park. As for the Cliffhanger, I’m told that any mudslide that would have happened at it’s location near the sky lift would have slide down the opposite site of the mountain and not towards Rich Cove Road.
    (2/8/10) While we haven’t heard anything about the future fate of Ghost Town in the Sky lately, the local news reports that a massive mudslide struck the area around the park that resulted in the evacuation of many residents. This report claims that the slide may have started when a retaining wall(s) at Ghost Town failed before moving down to the residential area. I’ve even been sent one unconfirmed report from a local claiming that the area where this occurred may have involved the site of the Cliffhanger coaster, possibly causing some damage to the ride’s structure. Anyone else know more?
    (11/20/09) Ghost Town is heading into Bankrupcty once again, and the local news reports that Ghost Town’s plan is to offer their creditors payment for 25% of what they owe… to be paid off over the next several years. Apparently several key creditors were quite upset over this proposal but in the end, it’s apparently going to go before a bankruptcy judge to decide if the deal is to be accepted or if the park will be put up for auction.  Not helping matters is the fact that Ghost Town also failed to provide several financial statements to the court on time.
    (11/12/09) It looks like the end could be near for the rebirth of Ghost Town In The Sky. According to this news report, Ghost Town has ended the season while leaving many employees unpaid for the last few weeks or work. Water and Power service to the park has also been cut for nonpayment.
    (8/31/09) Things are not looking good for Ghost Town In The Sky so far. Despite bringing in $1.53 million this season so far, the park has still not been able to cover it’s overhead and operating expenses, of which they have paid $1.845 million so far this year.