Advertisement Officials: Report shows Sanford theme park viable Report cost $35,000 Share Shares Copy Link Copy

Could a theme park and entertainment complex in Sanford attract tourists from all over the country?Click here to watch the reportSanford Mayor Tom Cote said the results of a recent study say yes. A site in the southern part of the city near the regional airport is being studied.Poll: Do you think a theme park should be built in Sanford?Supporters of the idea said it could help lower taxes and have positive economic effects all over the state.Some people might scoff if you told them a field in Sanford could one day be the site of a theme park and entertainment complex that could draw tourists from all over North America to southern Maine. Cote said he and other planners are thinking big.“It goes beyond, I think, the scope of a Six Flags but certainly the scope of Disney World might be a little bit large compared to what we’re thinking about,” Cote said.Cote said the results of a feasibility study done by two California consultants show Sanford is a good spot for a theme park developer to make a multi-million-dollar investment.“It’s beyond the, ‘Gee, that would be nice.’ It’s, ‘Yes, there are proof points here that, financially, this would make sense,’” Cote said.There’s a lot of support for the idea, locally.It could lower city taxes and help local businesses by giving people a reason to visit Sanford.“It’s not on the way to anything,” said David St. Hilaire of Sanford. “It’s not on the way to the Lakes Region and the mountains. I think it would be a good idea.”Private investors raised $35,000 to pay for the recent study, and the city kicked in $5,000 of taxpayer money. Cote and other planners did not release the report to the public and did not share specific information from the report.“It’s not a matter of hiding things, it’s a matter of making sure that we are protecting the other private investors as well,” Cote said.The next step is for the city to position itself to begin talks with developers.“The idea is that we need to make sure that our story’s together,” Cote said. “We can entice the appropriate investor and not squander those chances by getting overly excited about it.”Cote said he would not venture a guess about when anyone might break ground on the project and would not predict when a facility could open.