The owners of a Kentucky theme park featuring a replica of the biblical Noah’s Ark are suing its insurance company over rain damage to the property, the Deseret News reported Sunday.

Ark Encounter’s main attraction is a 510-foot-tall replica of the ark based on the specifications offered in the Book of Genesis. But the park says that visitors found it difficult to access the ark after heavy rains in 2017 and 2018 caused a landslide that blocked the access road and rendered portions unsafe to drive on. Ark Encounter’s 77-page lawsuit alleges that its five insurance companies refused to cover the $1 million in damages, and is now seeking compensatory and punitive costs.

Ark Encounter stressed that the ark itself was unharmed, the road has since been rebuilt and the park is open for business.

“You got to get to the boat to be on the boat,” a spokeswoman told the Louisville Courier-Journal.

The park, which is run by the same evangelical Christian organization that operates the nearby Creation Museum, attracted controversy before it opened in 2016 because it received public tax incentives during the construction process.


https://forward.com/fast-forwa...-christian-kentucky/

Heavy rains?

Ark?

Hmmm....

I have seen the Arc from a distance as its a very large structure. Was joking with a family member that it was probably Amish craftsman who built it. Sure as heck was, something like 1,000 Amish. Said to have over 100 tons of steel plates and bolts holding it together. I've read Noah used Gopher wood to build the Arc but have not learned what the Kentucky Arc is made from. It is $45.00 to see it and park. I've been told the Owners will never recover their investment.

quote:

Originally posted by David Lee:
I have seen the Arc from a distance as its a very large structure. Was joking with a family member that it was probably Amish craftsman who built it. Sure as heck was, something like 1,000 Amish. Said to have over 100 tons of steel plates and bolts holding it together. I've read Noah used Gopher wood to build the Arc but have not learned what the Kentucky Arc is made from. It is $45.00 to see it and park. I've been told the Owners will never recover their investment.

Well, unless 40 days and 40 nights, of course....

It’s stories like this one that makes SigForum so great!

“You got to get to the boat to be on the boat,” a spokeswoman told the Louisville Courier-Journal…

The operation has fallen short in its attendance predictions. There has been feuding with the local government over a safety tax, and the park has done some tricks with its property. At issue is $18 million dollars in tax breaks.

“Ham initially projected 1.2 million people would visit the Ark in the first year after it opened in July 2016, and that average yearly attendance going forward would be in the range of 1.4 million to 2.2 million people. On the first anniversary of the park’s opening, Ham said about 1 million people visited in the first year, about 16 percent fewer than expected. But, Ham said he expected the 2017-18 attendance to be “closer to the high end” of the projections – in other words, close to 2.2 million people.

Williamstown’s safety fee collection data indicates that not only will the Ark Park’s second-year attendance come nowhere close to 2.2 million, but it will be lucky to hit 1 million. Based on the revenue the city collected, about 750,000 tickets were sold to park visitors in 11 months. In order to hit 1 million paid visitors for 2017-18, Ark Encounter would need about 250,000 visitors in June – more 100,000 more than what’s been reported as the best-performing month of the fiscal year, last July.”
https://www.au.org/blogs/wall-...-to-reach-attendance

“The state tax break, which is supervised by the Kentucky Tourism Development Finance Authority, allows tourist attractions to recoup up to 25 percent of construction costs. Ark Encounter’s construction costs were estimated to exceed $100 million, but tourism officials placed an $18 million cap on the tax break for the project.”
Read more here: https://www.kentucky.com/news/...7.html#storylink=cpy

“Kentucky halted the Ark Encounter's tax incentives last week when tourism officials determined the attraction breached its agreement with the state after its ownership changed to nonprofit.

This property maneuver has happened while the Ark Encounter and city of Williamstown feud over a 50-cent safety fee.
The City Council imposed the fee on each Ark Encounter ticket to raise $715,000 annually for police and fire.
The Ark Encounter owners have claimed it's a religious nonprofit, exempt from the tax.
https://www.cincinnati.com/sto...ncentives/509047001/

Ham...I know that name....

I'm sure someone could do a great stand up routine on this one...

Touchdown Jesus was struck by lighting a few years ago. The Cincinnati one.

Don’t tell me, insurance claims acts of God are not covered.

First, the "Ark" is a building, not an actual ark, only having the form of one.

Second, the building was not damaged, only the road leading to the attraction. Caused by a landslide after heavy rains.

Much ado about nothing.

The Ark Encounter has been a favorite target of the media sinces its inception, often printing false stories only to quietly correct those stories (sometimes) later with a few obscure lines. Most lately it was the AP who salaciously reported that the ark building was ironically damaged by rains only to later correct the story, this time accurately, and quietly, stating only the road was damaged.

Atheists, LGBTQBPXYZ groups, etc have all fought battles to stop its construction and operation. Most lately, the Freedom From Religion group, the same group that sues states to force them to remove crosses honoring fallen servicemen and women, opposed states allowing school children to visit the attraction as part of class field trips - "warning" 100 school districts that they would be in violation of the law if they allowed students to visit. Naturally, that is untrue if if the visits are for secular, educational purposes. In response to that, Ken Ham agreed then to allow school groups to attend for free, and he offered legal defenses, at his expense, for any school district that was sued by the FFR group for allowing school groups to visit.

As far as Amish building the ark, apparently some were involved. But there is a time-lapse video of the Ark being built taken from the time the land was cleared to the time the Ark was complete. Unless the Amish use heavy construction equipment, then I suspect the Amish involvement was partial, at best.

I will give the Ark a shameless plug: I was there about 6 months after it first opened and it was great. I have disagreements with every interpretation Ken Ham has of Genesis, but thought the Ark and its displays were fantastic. It is definitely worth a visit. Until you walk up under the ark, you don't really get an idea of just what a massive undertaking it was to build.

And while you are there, you can pick up one of these:

I have always assumed that the whole Noah's Ark story was just an allegory. I am wondering if the majority of the people who attend this attraction are of the belief that there really was a Noah who really built an ark, etc. It would be interesting to know how many Jews and Christians take the story literally.

quote:

Originally posted by Salty Dawg:
It would be interesting to know how many Jews and Christians take the story literally.

I have often thought of posting a poll asking that and similar beliefs, but thus far have resisted the urge. It would be interesting to know, but I believe such a poll would be derailed very quickly here.

This is one discussion from a few years ago that states that many/most people’s beliefs about the literal truth of Genesis are not as firm as some polls and statements might indicate:
“Do you believe?”
“Yes.”
“Are you sure?”
“Well ….”

quote:

Originally posted by sigfreund:

quote:

Originally posted by Salty Dawg:
It would be interesting to know how many Jews and Christians take the story literally.

I have often thought of posting a poll asking that and similar beliefs, but thus far have resisted the urge. It would be interesting to know, but I believe such a poll would be derailed very quickly here.

The same thing crossed my mind when I posted my comment, but I'm afraid you are correct. I'm also not interested in seeing another rehash of the believers vs. non-believers debate. I am simply curious to know how many of those who consider themselves believers think the writings of the Old Testament are factual/literal accounts. I'd be interested in knowing the percentages of both Jews and Christians on the topic.

I read on line it was built by Amish but seeing those videos, it was not. That is a ship not a boat. Way beyond what one man could construct. It is a beautiful ship but I cant be convinced. Looks like a great attraction just the same.

Replicas will get you in trouble every time!




Link to original video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1crhwQPKr7w

A DE...lol. I was in the rent a john taking a pee and it started storming, lightning and thunder and small hail. Anyone know how long its going to rain?

quote:

Originally posted by Salty Dawg:
I have always assumed that the whole Noah's Ark story was just an allegory.

It is. There is not enough water on the planet to accomplish a world covering flood. It is very possible that an epic localized flood created the biblical flood story, but the fact remains that it is just a story.

quote:

Originally posted by gearhounds:
It is very possible that an epic localized flood created the biblical flood story, but the fact remains that it is just a story.

It’s interesting to consider what sort of local incident might have led to such myths. One theory that enjoyed brief popularity is that it could have originated when a natural barrier at the Strait of Gibraltar was broken and water from the Atlantic poured in and filled the huge dry basin that became the Mediterranean Sea in the time of a few years.* The only problem with that notion, though, was that event occurred about 5.3 million years ago, long before modern humans existed.

* Link.

quote:

Originally posted by sigfreund:

quote:

Originally posted by gearhounds:
It is very possible that an epic localized flood created the biblical flood story, but the fact remains that it is just a story.

It’s interesting to consider what sort of local incident might have led to such a story. One theory that enjoyed brief popularity is that it could have originated when a natural barrier at the Strait of Gibraltar was broken and water from the Atlantic poured in and filled the huge dry basin that became the Mediterranean Sea in the time of a few years. The only problem with that notion, though, was that event occurred about 5.3 million years ago, long before modern humans existed.

It could been nothing more than a huge flash flood, glacier lake break out or a natural dam collapse. Any really large release of water uphill. In desert environs they can appear suddenly, without warning, and be a fearsome spectacle. There are some real doozy examples on YouTube and to someone basically living at or just above Stone Age standards could resemble the end days.