Gilroy
– A soggy spring and searing July heat deflated attendance at
Bonfante Gardens this year, though park officials and investors are
calling the financial downturn a
”
sustainable hit.
”
Gilroy – A soggy spring and searing July heat deflated attendance at Bonfante Gardens this year, though park officials and investors are calling the financial downturn a “sustainable hit.”
The nonprofit park, nestled among farmland and woods off Hecker Pass in western Gilroy, brought in $1.14 million less in gross revenues this summer than in 2005, according to a quarterly financial report covering the period through August.
“The park was greatly adversely affected by an extremely rainy April which resulted in a drop in both attendance and season ticket sales,” the report states. “We were then hit with a record-breaking heat wave over an 11-day period in July, with temperatures reaching 114 (degrees). Bonfante Gardens attendance continued to be soft, which appears to be consistent with other California parks and attractions as well as an industry trend.”
The park’s gross revenues were $8.9 million in August 2005, compared to $7.5 million for the same period this year. Reduced ticket sales accounted for nearly $500,000 of the decline, while food sales fell by more than $250,000. Together, the two categories account for 80 percent of the park’s gross revenues.
The financial blow was softened by hundreds of thousands of dollars in savings from a reduced tax assessment, according to the report.
“It’s a sustainable hit for the time being,” said Joel Goldsmith, vice president of the park’s board of directors. “It’s not something we can continue year after year, but we’re certainly in the position to weather this one hit.”
The extra breathing room comes from a major financial restructuring completed in summer 2005, when the park reduced its debt load from $70 million to $13 million. City officials paved the way for the restructuring by allowing the park to sidestep local zoning rules and sell off 33 acres of land for development. The deal was begrudgingly approved by city leaders who feared that dozens of remaining acres of park land could fall prey to developers if Bonfante Gardens filed for bankruptcy.
Though revenues are down for the summer, the fiscal year is far from over and park officials hope there is time to recoup some of the losses. Unlike past years, officials have chosen to keep operating on weekends between September and November.
For the third year in a row, the park will seek to squeeze profits from a traditional dead season by adorning trees and gardens with holiday decorations and hundreds of thousands of lights. The Holiday Lights event is one of Bonfante Gardens’ most successful programs, and the park’s new manager, national amusement park operator Cedar Fair, will try to build on its success by adding daily parades to the menu of attractions.
The park’s long-term plans and reduced debt load outweighed concerns over a slow season for at least one investor.
“I don’t think the numbers are any worse than any other amusement park in California or America right now,” said Chris Lippman, an investor whose clients hold more than $500,000 of the park’s debt. He said he received the park’s semi-annual debt payment this week, as scheduled. The park mails roughly $800,000 in debt payments each May and November. Lippman has a “high level” of confidence in the park’s ability to continue making future payments.
“Obviously with the restructured debt load,” he said, “it puts them in a better spot for economic downturns like this.”
The park’s Holiday Lights season begins Nov. 24. Single-day tickets can be purchased online (www.bonfantegardens.
com) for $28, and season tickets cost between $60 and $70. The park is located at 3050 Hecker Pass Highway.
Serdar Tumgoren, senior staff writer, covers City Hall for The Dispatch. Reach him at 847-7109 or [email protected].
