Climbing the Mountain: $300M in investments underway in Branson

Last edited at 7:58 a.m., June 3, 2016

The 1990s are long gone, but Branson officials say the tourist town is on the brink of a development wave akin to that historic decade.

While a couple of dozen theaters are still the stars in town, several new attractions are rising across the city and beyond, changing the landscape of entertainment offerings, prompting new investments from existing businesses and potentially spurring record tourism.

Highlights include the $10 million Fritz’s Adventure, with rock climbing, tunnels, swings and zip lines; a $10 million amusement park, Bigfoot on the Strip, centered on a 200-foot, free-fall ride; the $5 million Branson Mountain Adventure Park with the Ozarks’ first mountain coaster; and the former Chicago Navy Pier Ferris wheel taking shape as the $4 million Branson Ferris Wheel.

The city is part of the action, too, with its $80 million Spirit of 76 streetscape project, and $12.5 million budgeted in 2016 for Phase I. Another key project is the Ballparks of America plan to convert the former Red Roof Mall into 16 baseball fields; Phase I is $15.5 million.

Then, there is CoxHealth’s new child care facility – also $15.5 million – as well as Mercy’s $19 million specialty clinic on Highway 248 and two more $10 million investments: Antlers Resort at Indian Point and Chalets on Table Rock Lake.

“If you look at the whole market – Stone and Taney counties – it translates into over $300 million in new investments in 2016,” said Jeff Seifried, president and CEO of the Branson/Lakes Area Chamber of Commerce and Convention and Visitors Bureau, pointing to the $8 million La Quinta Inn and $23 million Menards coming online in Hollister, as well as reinvesting efforts by hotels and attractions. “And we know there are more projects that haven’t been announced, so there is more to come by the end of the year.”

Outside influences
Father and son Dan and Mark Ruda are the developers behind the Branson Mountain Adventure Park, which is next to Skyline Baptist Church on Highway 160.

The centerpiece and first attraction of the park is called The Runaway, a mile-long mountain coaster that utilizes a nearly 400-foot natural slope on hills adjacent to Fall Creek. The coaster crosses the creek twice, to push riders up the hill from a central station and ticket area, and again following a pair of 360-degree horizontal loops on the downhill track. The trip down is fueled only by gravity – with brakes available for the squeamish – following a continuous slope that can generate cart speeds up to 30 miles per hour. Construction is designed to limit tree removal and enhance the experience with passengers darting through the oaks and hickories. Carts seat two with a 300-pound limit for the roughly 7-minute ride. Early prices are set at $15 per person for an estimated July 15 opening.

Dan Ruda, a co-owner and president of Thousand Hills Golf Resort in Branson, said while there likely are more attractions to come – possibly a zip line or ropes course – the impetus was to create a unique attraction.

Called mountain or alpine coasters, Matt Ruda said there are over 200 at ski resorts in Europe and about a dozen in the states, including through the Smoky Mountains in Pigeon Forge, Tenn., a tourist town about the size of Branson.
 
“Development breeds development. And development breeds success, it breeds excitement and curiosity,” Dan Ruda said, noting plans for the Branson Mountain park have been in the works for about two years. “All of that feeds not only the new projects, but the existing businesses.”

On Highway 76, The Track Family Fun Park is weeks away from completing its installation and upgrades to the former Chicago Navy Pier Ferris wheel.

Now dubbed the Branson Ferris Wheel, the 150-foot tall attraction is slated to start spinning June 22 on the site of Track 4’s former Gator Golf course.

The Track President and CEO Craig Wescott said company officials jumped at a chance last fall to buy the wheel for under $2 million when they learned the Windy City was replacing the attraction after a 20-year run. Wescott said the company had been intrigued over the past few years with the idea of adding a Ferris wheel.

“To say it was in a short-term strategic plan would be an overstatement,” Wescott said. “We just asked the right people the right questions at the right time.”

Project plans include a fresh coat of paint and new LED lighting for the 40-gondola wheel, which can hold up to 240 people.

‘Second wave’
For Seifried, tourism is still king, but the area’s range of entertainment options is what characterizes today’s Branson. From shopping at Branson Landing, a round of golf at Top of the Rock or renting a boat on Table Rock Lake, Branson in 2016 is more than Moe Bandy.

“The types of investments we are seeing continue to dig deeper into the brand that we’ve had with a new product and a better experience for our customers,” Seifried said. “We’re not on the verge; we are in the second wave of new investment and reinvestment into the economy.”

From the Mansion Theater to Dixie Stampede and hotels on and off the strip, recent and ongoing renovations are part of the picture, he said.

“It’s hard to find a hotel that is not reinvesting in itself this year,” Seifried said.

A list compiled by the chamber identifies $15.7 million planned by Welk Resorts and $10 million in renovations at the Grand Country complex.

With record tourism last year – with 8.45 million people were estimated to visit – and new year-round daily service out of the Branson Airport, Seifried believes 2016 and 2017 should at least keep pace with national estimates for 2 percent growth.

“I think we’re on a three-year growth spurt as far as investment is concerned,” he said.

Wescott said it’s an exciting time in Branson, and he’s glad the company has found a way to add a new attraction to the mix. The wheel from Chicago is up now and people have noticed.

“People are saying they see it as an icon of change,” he said.