Developer reaches deal on New Orleans Six Flags site, paving way for project start

After years of false starts and bureaucratic quagmires, a deal has been reached that will allow a private consortium to redevelop the former Six Flags amusement park in New Orleans East and put it back into public use.

Mayor LaToya Cantrell’s administration announced Tuesday that Bayou Phoenix, the development group led by Troy Henry, has agreed to partnership terms with the New Orleans Redevelopment Authority, which oversees the 227-acre site.

The deal, which lays out development benchmarks, sets forth the requirements for a master plan and establishes other frameworks, hasn’t been formally signed, according to Henry. But he said he has seen the final draft and expects to sign it very soon. No financial or operational details of the agreement were immediately available.

The Cantrell administration selected Bayou Phoenix in October 2021 to serve as the master developer of the site, which has remained dormant since Hurricane Katrina. At the time, the group’s plans called for a logistics hub along with a water park, hotels, a sports complex and other amenities, with opening for the roughly $500 million project eyed for the end of 2026.

The deal talks extended for nearly two years, far longer than originally anticipated. But in a statement Tuesday, Cantrell said her administration would “not waver in our commitment to a development project that is transparent, accountable and in the best interest and of the utmost benefit of our community.”

The deal announcement is likely to come as a huge relief for New Orleans East residents, who have long been frustrated with post-Katrina recovery failures. It also represents a much-needed victory for Cantrell, who has promised to prioritize New Orleans East economic development initiatives but hasn’t secured any major wins. 

Henry said he thinks demolition of the looming, abandoned roller coasters could begin later this year. After signing the agreement, Bayou Phoenix will then hold a public forum, likely in the next month or so, and a presentation of its master plan to the New Orleans Redevelopment Authority will follow. 

Assuming the authority’s board approves the plans, Bayou Phoenix will then sign a lease that allows it access to the site. Henry said he hopes the lease will be signed within six weeks. That will start the clock ticking on what he said will be a 42-month development period, with benchmarks the developers must meet along the way. 

“Probably the first thing is to drain the place, just to get the pump working there so you can drain the water that’s been on there for years. Probably chase a few alligators away,” Henry said.

After that, engineers and architects will get on site and figure out how to clear it. Developers still need to secure agreements with operators and financiers. Henry said there’s plenty of preliminary interest from both, but commitments will take time to solidify. 

“We don’t have commitment letters at this point in time, but we’ve got an overwhelming amount of financial interest,” Henry said. “Nobody is going to just do this off the top of their heads.”

While Bayou Phoenix’s initial proposal to the city included a logistics center, Henry said that is not in the immediate plans. Industrial uses could be considered in a second development phase, he said. 

Bayou Phoenix will be contractually bound to stick with the plans it presents to NORA, Henry said, though changes could be possible with the board’s approval.

“It does say, ‘you’ve got to do what you told us you were going to do,'” Henry said. 

Deal nearly fell apart

The announcement Tuesday follows a an extended period of complicated negotiations involving the developers and multiple public agencies. The talks grew tense at times, and at one low point last fall it looked like the deal might fall apart before it was signed. 

A key sticking point was the level of control authorities could exercise over the project. Henry said then that officials were demanding final say over its tenant leases, while officials — who disputed his characterizations of the talks — said they only wanted to ensure the project lived up to its public purpose. 

District E City Council member Oliver Thomas mediated a new round of talks, and the stalemate thawed. In a statement, Thomas thanked “all of the partners that got in a room with me and decided to put their differences aside.”

The deal has also stalled amid parallel talks between public agencies. 

The site had been held since 2009 by the Industrial Development Board, which agreed to take it after the city terminated its lease with Six Flags. But several attempts to solicit development proposals or sell it cratered, and the thinly staffed development board grew weary of the monthly upkeep and security costs. 

NORA, with its staff of around 30 and deep experience with development projects across the city, agreed in theory to take ownership of the site after Bayou Phoenix was selected.

But it separately wanted assurances from City Hall, including financial compensation, in case the project fell through. 

The Cantrell administration will pay $1 million to NORA to cover maintenance, security and other operational expenses, as well as the cost of a new solicitation if the need occurs, according to that agreement.

Photos: Six Flags New Orleans (Jazzland) through the years