Extremely BAD News: Dutch Springs likely closing permanently ...

[-JD-]

Any idea what it’s selling for and what the revenue is?

A lot and not very much but I don't know exacts.

Scuttlebutt that I've heard is mid single-digit $M sale price.
(Per the video) Enough that going into space is part of the after-closing travel plans ....

Revenue: Enough to have a lawyer eventually switch careers and run it for 40 years (total). In all fairness, my understanding is that it was a long time before any significant positive revenue was coming in and that the recreational (aquapark/beach/ropes-course) aspect is a non-trivial component.

 

[Superlyte27]

It doesn’t matter. Looks like the deal is already done. I spent enough money this quarter anyway lol

 

[tridacna]

No one has yet come up with a feasible alternative to Dutch for open water checkouts. Shark River is too limited in terms of space and timing. There was a rumor of a quarry in Hamburg but that came to nought. I had heard that PADI had been involved but did not hear anything further from them. Anyone else know anything? This will be major backbreaker for many NE dive shops. Round Lake maybe?

 

[formernuke]

My understanding was the owners were doing it more as a hobby that brings in a small amount of income rather than actual real money.

 

[tridacna]

My understanding was the owners were doing it more as a hobby that brings in a small amount of income rather than actual real money.

That was way too much work to be a hobby. That was fulltime grueling work. Arranging and coordinating staff on weekends in summer was incredibly stressful. Their insurance bill equally so. We'll never know how much money Stoo made there but it was never a hobby. If you ever visited their booth at BTS, you'd realize that it was FTE.

Agreed that he was always undercapitalized and there was much more that could have been done to make it more attractive to divers but that was bad business practice and not treating it like a hobby.

 

[rob.mwpropane]

I will miss Dutch, and I've only been going a few years. Cant imagine the pain some of you will will experience after having been going for decades.

With that said, if someone was going to do something, come up with a plan, raise money, etc... don't you think something would have happened by now? I mean, unless a miracle happens, I think the ship has sailed, yeah?

 

[BoundForElsewhere]

Hey, we can still dive at Coney and Beach 8th (Rockaways)....

I wonder when PADI is coming out with that cadaver recovery certification....

 

[tridacna]

Hey, we can still dive at Coney and Beach 8th (Rockaways)....

I wonder when PADI is coming out with that cadaver recovery certification....

When I was younger and stupid and had a higher degree of tolerance for traffic, I used to enjoy going there. Not so much any more!

Beach 8th & 9th in the old days when Jay owned it was a fun place. It was like the Caribbean for a few weeks every year. Blennies in the crack needles. Who could forget?

 

[OTF]

There is a CNBC video that talks about it, and the company that bought it (Trammell Crow) says they plan to keep it open for diving, but it's all very vague.

This is a strange long shot but... Trammel S. Crow, the son of late Texas real estate mogul Trammel Crow (who I assume that company is related to), is a serious environmentalist and conservationist. I'm not sure what his involvement is with that real estate company or if he has any sway at all. But if he does, he may be the type of person who would be sympathetic to preserving public access to that resource. Possibly worth reaching out to him. He runs an organization called EarthX.

 

[johndiver999]

There are quite a few quarries filled with water in that general area. North of and around Nazareth, PA. Perhaps someone should take a look? Chapman quarry.. there are others.