RYE, N.Y.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Standard Amusements, operator of the iconic Rye Playland, today commented on its Notice of Termination of the Playland Management Agreement with Westchester County:
“For over a decade, we have tirelessly worked to revitalize Playland and restore it as a special place for residents and visitors for generations to come. We are proud of the progress we made towards achieving our vision, including improving rides and attractions, engaging local artists to enhance the park with their creativity, establishing new traditions through robust community programming, launching a seasonal ferry service, and much more to create dynamic opportunities and memorable experiences for our community.
But, fully realizing our vision required the County to meet the construction obligations necessary to complete improvements to the park. Despite spending over $150 million of taxpayer money— already surpassing their $125 million budget intended to cover completion of the entire project—the County has proven incapable and is nowhere near done.
Accordingly, our contract, negotiated over the course of nearly a year with the assistance of a federal judge, was carefully structured with contractual deadlines for construction to ensure our extensive renovation plan stayed on track. And, in the event the County failed to meet those deadlines, the contract contained a detailed formula outlining precisely what the County would owe Standard Amusements in these exact circumstances.
The County, by its own admission, failed to meet those deadlines, over and over again, despite our consistent flexibility and patience, including a blanket one-year extension on all of their project deadlines.
Our contract lays out plainly that we are entitled to terminate the agreement and the amount of damages that are due.
Nevertheless, upon receiving formal notice of termination this week, the County is ignoring these simple truths and opting to pursue two failed strategies we know all too well from our past legal battle:
(1) inventing Standard Amusements defaults to muddy the waters in the eyes of the public; and
(2) intentionally misrepresenting our agreement to cover up their own breaches.
This strategy failed miserably years ago when their dishonest claims were rejected in court, and cost Westchester taxpayers nearly $10 million in legal fees. Sadly, the County seems determined to go down this ill-advised path again.
Regarding our contract, the wording is clear. Legislator Parker may say this is a “marriage made in hell”—but the fact is we have a prenup.
As for the future of Playland, the outlook is uncertain and deeply concerning.
We want the park to have a successful season in 2025 and beyond.
To that end, since November, we have made every effort to work with the County to unwind our relationship in an orderly and responsible way.
These offers have thus far been ignored.
It is not apparent to us how the County, after squandering the months we have afforded them, will be ready to open Playland for the start of the season.
We sincerely hope—for the sake of Westchester County residents and visitors, our 48 employees, and ultimately the taxpayer—that the County changes its attitude and decides to prioritize the park and stops wasting time and money trying to spin and misdirect the public.”
