# Alien theme park in Roswell?



## Johnny Thunder (Feb 24, 2006)

*Alien theme park considered for Roswell*
Karen Michael
Record Staff Writer

Not only is it feasible to build an alien-themed amusement park in Roswell, a city official said, it's the only city where such a park could work.

Zach Montgomery, planning director for the city of Roswell, said New Mexico State University's Arrowhead Business Center did the feasibility study on the possibility of locating an alien theme park in Roswell. Because of the worldwide recognition of Roswell for aliens, he said, it was much more viable in the area.

"This is not a guaranteed project, but it has gone farther than any other theme park that has been considered for the city of Roswell, and it's looking very positive," he said."This project will add greatly to the things to do for the visitors that visit our great city in search of answers regarding aliens and UFOs, and the tax benefits and profits that could be realized from a project of this magnitude are tremendous."

Such a theme park could also provide many new local jobs, Montgomery said.

Local officials approached Gov. Bill Richardson in early December about the next phase of work on the alien theme park, and Montgomery said the governor encouraged them to request the funding from state Tourism Secretary Michael Cerletti because the phase will cost less than $250,000.

The next phase, Montgomery said, is creation of a business plan, a competitive analysis, a cost-benefit analysis, a management analysis, a schematic design and a development plan.

Montgomery said that in size and scope, the alien theme park would likely be similar to Six Flags Over Texas, a theme park in Arlington, Texas.

"It's going to have multiple rides, a learning center for research, if anyone wants to do research on their own, interactive stations where you can interact with the data," he said.

The park could be "anywhere from 75 to about 150 acres, depending on what is finally realized, negotiated and figured up," Montgomery said, noting that the studies will determine how large the park could be. He said there is no certainty on where the park could be built, except that it should be built within the city.

"We want to locate it inside city limits for the definite tax breaks," he said.

Montgomery said the city is not a partner in the effort to recruit a theme park, but could help out with water and sewer lines, paving streets and other projects.

"All of this is to be negotiated down the road, because the city has not voted on it," he said.

Several companies have already been approached about the possibility of building such a theme park in Roswell, Montgomery said, including Walt Disney World Company, Six Flags, Paramount and Madame Tussauds.

:googly:


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