Grand Island, NY (WBEN) - What's next for Fantasy Island?
The California-based Apex Parks announced on Wednesday that the park will permanently close as industry trade magazines note that the company has begun to try and sell off some of the rides.
As for the property itself? It isn't necessarily attractive to a developer who would want to use it for other reasons.
"There's an awful lot of vacant land on Grand Island that a developer who wants to build something can build on without having to lift a finger to demolish anything," said Real Estate Broker George Hamberger.
Hamberger is among those who believe that just because the park's current owner says it's permanently closed, that doesn't necessarily mean that another buyer would agree.
"I know that people were kind of depressed that no one would ever want this property as an amusement park," Hamberger said. "I think that they could be wrong with that. If someone could buy the thing right, and put their own touches to it and clean it up, I think it could be what it is now. If someone just wants 80 acres, there are a lot of other (options) there."