Developer Promises $1.2 Billion Theme Park “Bigger Than Disneyland” — in Tracy

A property developer says he has the money and the willpower to construct a $1.2 billion, 628-acre theme park four times bigger than Disneyland in the fields north of Tracy in the San Joaquin Valley, according to reports.

 

James Rogers's vision for the "Spirit of California" theme park includes a hotel, a casino, a marina, and boatloads of economic impact, according to the Stockton Record.

 

Rogers says he can break ground in two years and finish the whole deal by 2024 -- provided, of course, he's given the green lighty by city leaders.

 

Rogers has until Sept. 20 to prove to Tracy that he has the money. 

 

The proposed theme park is near a sports park currently under construction in the San Joaquin Valley city, which was hit hard by the foreclosure crisis.

 

Business and commerce leaders expressed doubt about the project, noting that other much-ballyhooed development deals have fizzled for lack of funding, including a theme park proposed for Lathrop.

 

And what about transportation? One freeway leads from the Bay Area to the San Joaquin, environmentalists noted. That makes the whole idea a "non-starter," one told the Record.