Aquarium Information

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A commenter asked us for information about the proposed aquarium so I decided I'd make a whole post for this. I'll do a fake interview with my self:

Questioner: "Where is the money for this super awesome fish tank gonna come from?"

What Can't Xanadu?: "No need to worry tax paying citizens, no money is coming from the state. The primary financial supporter is Colony Capital, the company sponsoring most of the project."

Q: "Who will be running this Aquarium?"

WCX: "That's a good question, and quite frankly, I can't answer it. All that we know is that it will be run by an 'undisclosed private company that runs aquariums.' Adventure Aquarium in Camden is run by Herschend Family Entertainment and was previously run by Steiner + Associates."

Q: "If we don't know who is running the Aquarium, how do we know if it will be a good job?"

WCX: "Carl Goldberg, the sports authority's chair, said that the undisclosed company currently in negotiations is "really world renowned for ecological sensitivity and very well structured aquarium experiences." With no other information to go on, I will trust Chairman Goldberg. I also find it extremely hard to believe that a company would put the time and money into this effort for a shoddy job."

Q: "Why is the Aquarium operator undisclosed?"

WCX: "I don't know the true reason, but my best guess would be that because the bill has not passed making the Aquarium a legal possibility, their are other legal issues involved in naming the company. They might just want to play it safe."

Q: "Who is building the Aquarium?"

WCX: "Cumming Corp, the same company building the rest of Xanadu. It's possible that they are running it as well, but I don't know."

WCX: "Thats all the time we have for now. Thanks for all the questions. See you all next time!"

The Aquarium Approved!

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On Monday, the state Senate committee unanimously approved the aquarium addition to the Xanadu complex. The hero in this story is Sen. Robert Gordon- D-Fair Lawn. The biggest roadblock was, of course, Adventure Aquarium in Camden.

Gordon said that there is enough distance between East Rutherford and Camden — almost 100 miles — for the Xanadu aquarium to "draw in an entirely different visitor base."

"New Jersey is big enough to support two top-notch aquariums," Gordon said. "Allowing the developers of Xanadu to include an aquarium in their planning introduces an educational element to the facility."

I consider this good news (and actual news after the last three posts of BS) and reassuring that this delay is for a good purpose (and porpoise hehe. Puns aren't funny? Shut up.). I really do like aquariums and can't wait to visit this place and then go fishing at the indoor lake.

By the way. I should be able to explain our secret surprise before the weekend. (Hopefully)

An interview with Security Guard Whitney

While walking around the grounds we passed by a security guard. We asked him some basic questions, pretending to be concert goers who were amazed by this giant thing, zanasomethingorother. Whatever. As our exclusive interview continued, we hinted that we knew more than we originally let on but Whitney never seemed to pick it up. He did provide three pieces of information that we found useful.

1) As is posted in the the snow dome update, the temperature will be 28 degrees year round.

2) There will be and indoor lake, probably at the Cabelas, that will be stocked with fish to try out the fishing gear. We heard the rumors but its nice to get some confirmation.

3) Most importantly, Whitney told us that the delay in opening is due to the addition of an aquarium. We still have not seen an official announcement about the aquarium but this is our second unofficial confirmation (the first being in the reason for the delay in the article posted a few posts early).

Unfortunately, we are not completely sure of the reliability of Whitney. He is only a security guard. Also, he told us that the delay was only 3 months. Does he know something we don't? Did they tell us August 09 so we'd be surprised by the earlier opening? Doubtful. A 3 month delay would put the opening February 09. That doesn't make much sense. August opens Xanadu in time for back to school and then the holiday season.

So what do we take from Whitney? The snow dome being kept at 28 degrees year round makes sense to us. The snow needs to stay frozen and they wouldn't make it unbearably cold. But it is nice to have a solid number. I believe there will be an indoor lake with fish at Cabelas. I read something about that earlier and its something that a Cabelas would have. I just never was able to completely comprehend the awesomeness. And I do think that there will eventually be an aquarium, especially if the biggest obstacle is the aquarium in Camden. Seriously, Camden? However, I am most skeptical about the aquarium. Obviously, there has been no official announcement (we would have a post on it, duh), and it is possible that Whitney was just reporting on the rumor. I just can't see Camden stopping this from happening.

I Feel Cold

The grand opening of our dream land has been pushed off until mid summer 2009. I was always thought that there was no way a 2 million square foot complex could be completed by November, but now that is true, its awful.

Why the delay?

Complex construction for several unique tenants — the project includes an indoor snow dome, a 3,400-seat concert hall and an aquarium — was cited by the developers as the chief cause of the delay.

That was sort of my thought too. Oh and is this confirmation of the aquarium? I'll keep my eyes open.

Turns out that traffic issues also played a role as the railway would not have been ready until Spring 09 anyway.

"Traffic concerns are the No. 1 issue that I am confronted with," said Jim Kirkos, president of the Meadowlands Chamber of Commerce. "If the delay allows the roadwork and mass-transit projects to catch up, it's hard for me to look at that as a long-term negative. It's also important that the project gets done right."

Not only will the traffic be bad from the pilgrimages to this wonderful dreamland, but opening in the middle of football season would only make the driving worse.

There is also some thought that the slumping economy could have had some impact on the decision.

"I would say that probably what's happening here is more a sign of the times than it is a sign of Xanadu's problems," said Chuck Lanyard, president of the Goldstein Group, a retail real estate firm in Fair Lawn. "With the economic slowdown that we're experiencing, they probably need more time to bring these anchors in and do some more negotiating."

In addition, they probably want to wait for improved consumer confidence as well as a more aggressive retail industry.

"Everyone expects that the economy is going to turn around midyear [2009]," said Medina, the former state commerce secretary whose office is directly across Route 3 from the Xanadu site. "So, you open up an incredibly beautiful venue in the summer. You make a huge splash. And hopefully you could then have tremendous success that will carry on for the rest of the year."

The bad news for us is that we have to go through another holiday shopping season at the Garden State Plaza, Palisades mall or Willowbrook Mall. What a let down. I can't finish a post on such a negative thought.