While working from home during the pandemic, former Disney strategist Lizzy McGee had an epiphany: why not construct a theme park dedicated to the history and culture of the Lone Star State?
McGee, a Houston native, was inspired while working in her childhood bedroom, and wants visitors to Texas Land to experience as much of her home state as possible.
McGee told Texas Monthly, "You could have the Towns of Texas Pavilion, and have a Matt's El Rancho in the Austin part, and Lonesome Dove and the Stockyards in the Fort Worth pavilion, and a haunted house in the Marfa pavilion."
And McGee wants to open the park in her hometown.
She always wanted a park back in Houston, which it hasn't had since Six Flags AstroWorld closed in 2005. And while McGee believed Disney wouldn't find Houston appealing due to the huge economic risk, she realized that "Texas itself is its own brand," and didn't need a Disney or Universal.
Ultimately, McGee hopes that TexasLand can be for Texas what Disneyland is for many Californians.
She said, "I saw how people in L.A. and Southern California treated Disneyland, like it was in their backyard. They go on a random Tuesday afternoon, or they have their high school grad night there. Houston's the fourth-largest city in the U.S. We should have something like this in our backyard."
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