Springfield News-Leader - Past Littered with plans that fell through

Past littered with plans that fell through

Branson's dramatic growth has been tempered by developments that never came to pass.

Kathryn Buckstaff
News-Leader

The Branson area has steadily grown as a tourism destination since the turn of the 20th century. But in 1991 came unprecedented national attention: In late August, it was a story in Time magazine. Next came mentions in People, the Los Angeles Times and the Wall Street Journal.

But what really lit the fire was on Dec. 8, 1991, when "60 Minutes," the most watched show on national TV, did an appealing segment with show host Morley Safer. He called Branson "the live country music capital of the universe" and "a wonderful nowhere, a cafe, a five-and-dime, 3,000 people, and it gets 4 million visitors a year."


Engler Block
Nationally known entertainers and entrepreneurs came in waves. Within the next two years, the number of theaters, hotels, restaurants and visitors doubled. In 1993, the value of new construction hit $119.5 million, a record likely to be broken this year.

The Branson area has seen dramatic growth over the past 15 years, but not everything that was announced came into being.

Here are some past projects — and what has happened on those sites.

1992

# Branson South was planned for 1,600 acres south of town. Developer Chuck Wofford announced plans for luxury hotels, a 10,000-seat conference center, five theaters, a shopping center, golf courses and homes. After the topsoil was torn off, financial backers were never found. Some of that property has now been purchased by the Argonaut Group. Its plans include a golf course, homes and condominiums and retail.

# Texas developer Ed Logan proposed a theater, 540-room hotel and 1,000-seat restaurant called "Logan's Branson Station" on 14 acres near the Grand Palace. The land is still vacant.

# The Gatlin Brothers Summitt on Forsythe Road near the Grand Palace was to have included two theaters, a hotel and restaurant. The developer was Global Productions Inc. of Dallas. The land is still vacant.

# Merle Haggard's management announced that Haggard would build a theater in 1993. He shared the stage with Willie Nelson at what is now Yakov's American Pavilion during the summer. Neither entertainer returned after that.

# Johnny Paycheck announced that investors would buy him the Foggy River Boys theater. The theater was torn down the following year. Paycheck played only a few dates in Branson.

# A monorail was supposed to cure serious traffic woes. The bullet-shaped cars were to be elevated along Missouri 76. But the city balked at the $5 million-per-mile price tag. The California engineers went home. Now, the city has commissioned a traffic study to look into monorail transit and search for grants that might be available.

1993

# The highlight of proposals was Heartland America, a 265,000-square foot enclosed mall anchored by a major department store with cinemas and restaurants. The development on property owned by the Presley family also was to include three hotels, a 3,000-seat theater and office complex. Disputes between investors nixed the project. A time-share condominium project by Marriott now occupies some of the property.

1994

# This was the year of convention centers that didn't happen. Three were proposed, including one by Springfield's John Q. Hammons that was to have been located behind the Grand Palace. Springfield developer John Swanson and Californian Robert Psenka also asked the city to help with funding. The city said no to all three. The city of Branson will break ground this month on a city-owned convention center on the downtown lakefront.

# Knott's Berry Farm, a Southern California staple, took a look at Branson, but it never took shape. The proposed site is now the location for The Shoppes outlet mall.

# "Hello I'm Gellatin" was to be the first franchise of an all-Jell-O take-out restaurant developed by Charles Shamoon of Atlanta. He said he was devising special Branson dishes including "M-M-Mel-o-Jell-O," named for stuttering Mel Tillis.

# Sun City, one of the nation's largest developers of retirement communities, did preliminary studies for a Branson location.

# Former Chrysler Corporation Chairman Lee Iacocca announced plans for a golf course and resort hotel in Branson Hills. Iacocca never came back, but a Colombia developer is now building Branson Hills Plaza with a Target and Home Depot. An Alabama-based consortium also plans a golf course and homes on the property.

# Camelot came and went. After three weeks of operation, owners of the renaissance theme park near Blue Eye fired the 65 employees and left the area. The development was apparently headed by 14 investors including Chuck Wofford, who tried unsuccessfully to develop Branson South in 1992.