Category: Local Businesses, Mon Valley Miscellany || By

I sure hope West Mifflin High School has an excellent Spanish-language program:

New Chapter in Kennywood Entertainment History Announced

PITTSBURGH, December 11, 2007 --- Kennywood Entertainment of Pittsburgh announced today that it has entered into an agreement to sell its amusement park holdings, including Kennywood in West Mifflin, Idlewild & SoakZone in Ligonier, Sandcastle Waterpark in West Homestead, and New England parks Lake Compounce Theme Park in Bristol, Conn., and Story Land in Glen, N.H.

Acquiring Kennywood Entertainment is Parques Reunidos, based in Madrid, Spain, an international operator that manages 61 amusement, animal and water parks in the U.S. and Europe, with total annual visitors exceeding 22 million and revenues exceeding $570 million.

The purchase price is not being disclosed.

. . .

Well, then. Actually, I'm not at all surprised. I'm more surprised that Kennywood has remained family-owned for this long.

Rare is the family business that doesn't get sold when the fourth-generation descendants decide that spending the inheritance is a lot more fun than going to work every day.

After years of smacking around Kennywood's local management and complaining that they "don't listen to our concerns," West Mifflin's distinguished gentlemen will now get the "pleasure" of dealing with management 6,240 kilometers away (that's 3,880 miles for the benefit of borough council).

Let's see how willing that Kennywood's new jefes in Madrid are to negotiate nonsense like West Mifflin's arguably unconstitutional amusement tax. Not too willing, I'll bet.

A bunch of high-priced out-of-town lawyers are about to shove that tax right up West Mifflin's old Buttermilk Hollow, if you get my drift.

. . .

What else does this mean for the Mon-Yough area? I suspect it won't be long before Parques Reunidos is looking at vacant farmland somewhere like Washington or Butler county, along an interstate and far away from the urban decay of Kennywood Boulevard.

I'm not saying that Kennywood is doomed. But I wouldn't be a bit surprised to see Sandcastle (at the very least) relocated someplace more promising than West Homestead, nor would I be surprised to see resources allocated away from Kennywood and toward some other part of the tri-state region, even to an expansion of Idlewild or the creation of a "Kennywood II" 20 years from now.

I am confident that the Henningers and current Kennywood management (like Andy Quinn) will continue to be involved in Mon-Yough area affairs. But inexorably, a loss of local control always leads to a loss of corporate interest in the local community.

Just ask any of the organizations who used to receive grants from The Westinghouse Foundation.

The days of Kennywood's partiality and sentimentality to communities such as Duquesne, McKeesport and West Mifflin are going to grind to a halt.

. . .

Years ago, Joni Mitchell sang, "Don't it always seem to go that you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone?"

Well, a big yellow taxi just took away West Mifflin's favorite whipping boy.

On the upside? Paella and gazpacho at the Potato Patch.

. . .

That Kennywood press release in full:

New Chapter in Kennywood Entertainment History Announced

PITTSBURGH, December 11, 2007 --- Kennywood Entertainment of Pittsburgh announced today that it has entered into an agreement to sell its amusement park holdings, including Kennywood in West Mifflin, PA, Idlewild & SoakZone in Ligonier, PA, Sandcastle Waterpark in West Homestead, PA and New England parks Lake Compounce Theme Park in Bristol, CT and Story Land in Glen, New Hampshire.

Kennywood Entertainment has been a closely held family business since F.W. Henninger and Andrew McSwigan purchased Kennywood Park from the Monongahela Railway Company in 1906. The Henninger and McSwigan families, now in fourth and fifth generation, have remained owners for over 100 years.

Acquiring Kennywood Entertainment is Parques Reunidos, based in Madrid, Spain, an international operator that manages 61 amusement, animal and water parks in the U.S. and Europe, with total annual visitors exceeding 22 million and revenues exceeding $570 million.

Parques Reunidos, with the financial backing of the Candover investment fund, a private equity investor in London, approached Kennywood with a purchase offer as part of their plan to consolidate family entertainment venues around the globe.

"The Kennywood experience --- as visitors have come to love and expect --- will continue. Nothing will seem different, even to the folks working at the parks. Existing management and staff will remain in place," said Harry Henninger, Chairman of Kennywood Entertainment.

"In recent years, we've had talks with other operators wishing to acquire us, but Parques Reunidos is the first one to share our vision and philosophy."

"We have tremendous respect for the work of the Kennywood management team and are delighted to acquire such a quality organization," said Richard Golding, Chief Executive Officer of Parques Reunidos. "They've built Kennywood Entertainment into an industry leader in family entertainment. We are anxious to continue the gold standard of entertainment they have established."

"Richard Golding recognizes and appreciates the deep affection that all of the Kennywood properties enjoy with their communities," said Peter J. McAneny, Kennywood Entertainment President. "They intend to preserve these connections and build upon the history and tradition existing at each of the parks."

Henninger added, "This has been a very difficult decision for members of the founding families, now numbering over one hundred and residing all over the country. All of us are tremendously proud of what we created with Kennywood Entertainment. It has truly been a magical ride, managing Kennywood, starting Sandcastle, expanding and improving both Idlewild and Lake Compounce."

A March completion date is anticipated. The agreement is subject to satisfactory completion of due diligence inquiries by the parties. The purchase price is not being disclosed.