Investor group buys Nashville Shores

Former Six Flags leaders plan millions in upgrades

Email | Print By Geert De Lombaerde

An investor group led by two former Six Flags leaders has acquired Nashville Shores and plans to invest millions to grow the park's lineup of attractions.

The buyers aren't disclosing the price they paid Lake View Partners for the 11-year-old water park on Percy Priest Lake, but Kieran Burke, president of the new Nashville Shores Holdings, said they "expect to do some things that will make for big changes."

The Lake View Partners vehicle was founded four years ago by Brentwood-based Investors Equity Holdings. The entity took over the lease on the park's 385 acres owned by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and had plans to build out the facility much like its new owners say they will.

Burke was chairman and CEO of Six Flags Inc. from 2000 to 2005. Alongside his main operating partner in Nashville Shores, Gary Story, he built a water park holding company that started with Frontier City in Oklahoma and grew into Premier Parks before buying Six Flags and taking that company's name. Early this decade, Six Flags ran 39 parks in eight countries.

"We heard the ownership was open to selling and thought, 'What could be better than starting off in Nashville?'" Burke told NashvillePost.com. As big a city as it is and as many tourists as it draws, he added, "it really doesn't have the summertime outdoor entertainment attraction it deserves."

Nashville Shores General Manager Martin Strobel is staying on in his post and will help oversee the addition of attractions and amenities in time for the park's mid-May season opening. The new owners plan to unveil the details of the expansion in about a month.