"no going back" for murcia's paramount-branded theme park

At a press conference on 23 December the Mayor of Alhama de Murcia, the setting for Murcia's Paramount-branded Theme Park and Lifestyle Centre, said "there is no going back for the Paramount Park" and "there are investors".  Local estate agent Mercers believes these reassuring words will silence the Paramount "doubters".

Confidence was further boosted when Proyectos Emblematicos Murcianos SA (PREMURSA), the promoter behind the Park, officially announced that it will purchase the land destined for the project at a cost of 15.8 million euros on 6 February 2012.  Details of investors are said to be revealed to coincide with this important transaction. 

Chris Mercer, Director of Mercers which is based within ten minutes drive of the Theme Park, comments, "Some have been sceptical about Murcia's grand plans, understandable given the economic climate, however the Mayor has reiterated the importance of the project in guaranteeing work to a whole generation of young people growing up in Alhama de Murcia.  Likewise, if PREMURSA has officially stated its intent to spend almost 16 million euros next month we can be confident that they have the backing to proceed - otherwise 16 million euros for what is essentially a rather unremarkable piece of land would be a seriously expensive error.  All eyes will be on 6 February in anticipation of the biggest step forward in the project to date."

The land in question is in Alhama de Murcia and extends to just over 1.8 million m² of which 774,777m² will go to the Theme Park itself and just over 1.03 million m² to a Lifestyle Centre which includes seven hotels, restaurants, Bars, nightclubs and a business district with modern office space, an auditorium and convention Centre.  As the land already has plans in place for residential development, planning paperwork should be swift to meet the strict timescales of the Paramount Licensing agreement.  Jesus Samper, President and CEO of PREMURSA, has stressed "the importance of exercising the option to purchase these lots" which implies "a considerable step toward the project's execution".

Officially presented in October last year in Madrid, the Paramount-branded Park requires an investment of more than one billion euros but will create no less than 22,600 construction and operational jobs and hopes to attract upwards of three million visitors each year from around the world.  Building work is expected to commence in spring 2012 with an opening date slated in for April 2015.  PREMURSA has been granted the license to construct and operate the Theme Park, exclusively in Spain, for an extendable 30 year period.  The economic impact of the project could make up 2% of the Region's GDP in forthcoming years.

PREMURSA will undoubtedly be pleased with the news that Murcia has five million euros more than 2011 in its budget to promote tourist attractions of the Region.  The 11.8 million euro fund will be used on trade exhibitions and media campaigns in Spain and beyond with particular reference to the Paramount-branded Park.  Tour operators are already becoming excited about the large-scale tourist attraction, particularly when viewed in conjunction with the brand new Corvera Airport which will be fully operational by late summer this year.

PREMURSA has created an official magazine highlighting the Park's characteristics alongside some interesting statistics:  http://www.premursa.com/web2/ES/magazine/3.