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Oakwood Discussion

Danny said:
I'll bite.

What's the proof that you are the ones behind the project, other than a forum username based off a press release?
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Hi Danny, drop us an Email (link on website), someone will pick it up and reply back if you are unsure.

James Watkins said:
Can I ask, how much do you expect the project to cost / do you know what needs to be spent to bring the park back to an operational standard?
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It really depends on if we acquire the park and what exactly is left when that happens. But based on current estimates, phase one to bring it back to operational standard would be around £35 million. This covers essential refurbishments, infrastructure upgrades, accessibility improvements, and some new attractions.

Until we know what’s included in the acquisition, it’s tough to give a precise figure beyond that.
 
Mick said:
I have no questions to ask and retain a healthy scepticism at such an early stage, but wish you luck.
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Totally fair — healthy scepticism is more than reasonable at this stage. We’re early, and there’s a long way to go before anything is confirmed. All we can do is keep showing our work and stay transparent as things develop.

Appreciate the well wishes. If it does move forward, we hope to earn your confidence with actions, not just plans.
 
I wish you luck in your endeavour @RLP, my only suggestion would be to bring back some form of Nutty Jake attraction to park.

If your estimate of £35 million just to re-open the park is accurate, it's difficult to see how financially viable it will be to pull off though.
 
MaxPower said:
I wish you luck in your endeavour @RLP, my only suggestion would be to bring back some form of Nutty Jake attraction to park.

If your estimate of £35 million just to re-open the park is accurate, it's difficult to see how financially viable it will be to pull off though.
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Thanks — and agreed, Nutty Jake has serious legacy value. If we get control and the IP’s still usable, it’s definitely something we’d want to revive in some form.

On the £35m: that figure isn’t random or bloated. It’s from a formal regeneration model based on real infrastructure, compliance, and attraction costs — aimed at turning a closed park into a modern, accessible, year-round destination. We’re not pretending to foot that alone, and we’re not pretending this is easy.

It's a heavy lift because it needs to be — half-measures won't cut it. People deserve Oakwood to shine all year!
 
Are you using so-called AI to generate or supplement responses to questions?

What is the extent of the Welsh government's engagement with you?

Do your proposals rely on any funding from the Welsh or UK governments?

How is it that you are able to envisage investment in major rides at this stage?

Do you have access to the park's visitor numbers for 2024?

Do you have knowledge of the land value of the entire estate/park?
 
Tom said:
Are you using so-called AI to generate or supplement responses to questions?

What is the extent of the Welsh government's engagement with you?

Do your proposals rely on any funding from the Welsh or UK governments?

How is it that you are able to envisage investment in major rides at this stage?

Do you have access to the park's visitor numbers for 2024?

Do you have knowledge of the land value of the entire estate/park?
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Nope.

I am currently working with the welsh government with plans to make Oakwood a hub of entertainment including a STEM centre to educate and work with schools.

We are collaborating on transport and ideas should we acquire the park to be more accessible.

We have not released who is funding the project due to privacy.

Oakwood has been stripped back to nearly nothing. We are unsure of the current owners ideas for Megafobia and Speed. We couldn’t open a theme park with no rides.

From my understanding the parks visitors were roughly 104k in 2024.

We wouldn’t put a plan in motion if we didn’t know the value of the land. That is one of the first things that was checked.

On a personal note,

This project isn’t about land or who is backing the project. This is about bringing back Oakwood for all to enjoy.

Families, thrill seekers and those wanting to enjoy a fun atmosphere.

RicketyCricket said:
Yeah I've just run some of the above questions through Chat GPT and the replies are remarkably similar to those from @RLP

What a way to spend a Tuesday evening.
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You may not believe me or my intentions for Oakwood future, or my replies on here.

However we are here to bring the park back.
 
I have taken all notes and I understand that some are skeptical about our intentions, we are undergoing a website refurb with more clarity and show what our actual phases are. I understand there is a need for more clarity.
 
Bert2theSpark said:
Okay, now I’m 100% convinced this isn’t a serious bid. It’s just someone using ChatGPT, AI loves the word clarity.

Can we move on to some more sensible discussion now? I actually like that this forum was so authentic!
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Clarity?
really, that is quite a common word and I feel it is the best way they could have worded that sentence,

I feel like whatever they said you would have said it was chat gpt, I have seen chat gpt used for stuff like this, it dosnt sound like they are just asking chat gpt perhaps they are running it through chat gpt or something like grammaly but often chat gpt full sentences will use 3 adjectives for everything (idk why it really like that) they are also very list focused, and quite a few minor speech thing chat gpt often dose.

They also seem to have good knowledge of the area, plans and area something which chat gpt often isn't as good with
 
There have been some quite specific and feasible figures given by @RLP that I don’t think ChatGPT could pluck up, either; things like the cost to renovate the site and the number of visitors in 2024 are quite specific figures that haven’t been released in the public eye, and the amounts given seem quite believable.

A degree of scepticism is healthy, but I do think this is maybe the pessimistic contingent of the site coming out and burning this too quickly. This site can be extremely pessimistic at times (sometimes warranted, other times less so, in my view).

If they haven’t moved in years and are just plainly dragging things out like the London Resort, or if it’s plainly a fan-driven petition long after any salvageable park has vanished like the American Adventure one, then sure, criticise them, but given the proposal has only been known about for a few days and there is actually still a salvageable theme park on the site, I would give them a chance to establish themselves and get off the ground before criticising and getting too curmudgeonly.

Things like this have worked before. Look at Indiana Beach, which was reopened by Gene Staples! Or Kentucky Kingdom, which was reopened by Ed Hart!
 
KolonelKlink said:
I too have reservations about the whole thing given the breathless “looks rather like a fanboy having a play at theme parks” tweeting:

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Every proposal has to start somewhere, particularly given that this one is driven by a family rather than a big corporation. They aren’t going to have a slick website and communications team from the outset.
 
Chat GPT aside I have serious reservations around the level of ‘information’ being disclosed here.

Investment numbers, visitor numbers from Aspro etc - very unlikely that this data would be released to a public internet forum if serious negotiations were happening with the Welsh Government and Aspro. Most of this would be under NDA and/or you would want to keep it quiet as part of a negotiation strategy.
 
The long hyphen things are what sparked my AI question. Repeated use of "really appreciate" as well, maybe.

Anyway, my line of questioning was attempting to ascertain credibility. Knowing lots of things about the park and its current state is key to that, unless there are million/billionaire(s) behind a vanity project.

Let's hope it is serious, and comes to fruition.
 
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