A remarkable call from Jeroen Ferara, the man who is looking for a buyer for the Dutch parks of Peter Gillis on behalf of the Frisian entrepreneur Taeke Dijkstra. People who are interested in taking over a park themselves can report to him, he says. The message raises questions about the status of the Muducial Deal: will Dijkstra ever succeed in getting 185 million for the parks together?
Peter Gillis wants to get rid of his nine Dutch holiday parks. Earlier this year he seemed to have found a candidate: 75-year-old Fries Taeke Dijkstra would like to pay 185 million for the parks.
Soon there was a kink in the cable. When it turned out that Gillis had major problems with the tax authorities, the investors behind Dijkstra withdrew. Gillis tightened a case and the judge decided that the deal should continue, so Dijkstra had to pay. But now we are months further and there is no question of a deal yet.
‘Italian party’
Last Monday Ferara, who sees himself as the ‘Dealmaker’ Van Dijkstra, was still optimistic. At his holiday address in Italy he was in conversation with an Italian party who may want to take over all the parks, he reported to Omroep Brabant.
At the same time, he also played on other options. For example, he said he wanted to run a park together with Taeke Dijkstra. In their own words, Ferara ‘fourteen hours a day’ is busy looking for potentially interested parties.
‘Local Heroes’
On Saturday, Ferara will send a new message to several media. That message is partly positive. That way he would still be in conversation with several parties. “Conversations about 185 million, a few weeks after the troubles (…) is quite a big progress,” says Ferara. Among the interested parties would also be ‘ordinary people’, Ferara calls them ‘Local Heroes’, who want to take over parks.
Yet there is no question of a deal yet. The Groninger with Italian roots Then comes with a call: “If (…) people or companies are inspired to stand up as a hero for their region, they can contact me personally.” People who want to take over a park can send an email via the ‘Dealmaker’ website.
‘Rail of financial chasos’
The remarkable call raises the question whether this deal will ever make ends meet. And then there is also the necessary negative publicity around Taeke Dijkstra. Came so The Limburger Recently with a long story about the ‘Rail of financial chaos’ that Dijkstra has left during his career. The newspaper writes, among other things, about imposed periodic penalty payments, unpaid bills and how Dijkstra was put out of his holiday home.
“Financially and legally, things from the past have no influence on the purchase of the parks of the Oostappen Group,” says Ferara about the messages. He is very disappointed. “The negative publicity (…) does not benefit the parks, the employees, the region and residents.”