2013 Ark Encounter news

Notes

• Article titles in italic indicate the story appeared in the print edition.

• Syndicated stories (Associated Press-AP, United Press International-UPI, AFP, Reuters, etc.) are noted when available. Not all instances of story syndication are listed.

2013

January

• Jan 31. Grant County News. Dry Ridge, Kentucky. Timber! Ark Park Is A Go: Workers begin clearing trees by Jamie Baker-Nanztz. Page 1, 18.
  "Zovath said in the last year, the AE has invested over $6 million in buying the land with another $3 million being spent on site and exhibit design. The buzz of chainsaws and crashing of dead wood broke the silence of a chilly January afternoon as Tim Schmitt, landscape architect for the Ark Encounter, and a crew of two began cutting down trees on the 800-acre site just off Ky. 36 in Williamstown earlier this month."

• Jan 31. Grant County News. Dry Ridge, Kentucky. Timber! Ark Park Is A Go: Workers begin clearing trees by Jamie Baker-Nanztz.
  "Zovath said while the trees are being cleared, the architectural firm is working on securing construction permits, which include permits for waterways, encroachments, erosion control, grading and building permits for the Ark itself.
  “The firm we have hired estimates the permit acquisition process will take six to nine months and we expect to spend more than $2.4 million. Once we have all of the permits, we will be ready to begin the construction/bidding process. We will need the rest of the construction funds to come in to begin construction,” Zovath said.
  To date, about $12 million has been raised for the project, leaving another $12.5 million, still to be raised. Zovath said that donations in November and December 2012 were strong."

• Jan 30. Forbes. New York, New York. Not Income Tax Evasion - Structuring - That's How They Got Kent Hovind by Peter J. Reilly.
  "Kent Hovind was recently named to the Creation Science Hall of Fame. They may have to wait for any sort of induction ceremony as he is presently a federal inmate in Berlin, NH with a projected release date of August 11, 2015. Nick Lally believes that Mr. Hovind is in jail "out of principle and not deceit". We’ll get to that, but first I should explain that the Creation Science Hall of Fame does not yet have an actual hall, although they have projected one to be built. The Hall will be strategically located between the Answers In (sic) Genesis Creation Musuem (sic) and the upcoming Ark Encounter. I’m thinking I’ll wait for all three to be completed before I visit Petersburg KY as the only other attraction I noted there involves horseback riding."

• Jan 14. Business Courier. Cincinnati, Ohio. Ark Encounter halfway to $25M raised for replica Noah’s Ark: EXCLUSIVE by Lucy May.
  "But we are close to the halfway point in funding the $25 million Ark, the centerpiece of the Ark Encounter," he wrote. "When we have enough funds to break escrow, we will discuss the ground-breaking schedule."

• Jan 10. Grant County News. Dry Ridge, Kentucky. Can you dig it! Ark Park update. Pages 1, 18.
  "We’re moving along," he said. "We thought we'd be there by now, but with the economy as it is, it's just really been slow. To assure everybody that we are in this thing, we've got $9 million in the game already for property and all the work up to it. We’re going to see this thing through."

• Jan 10. Grant County News. Dry Ridge, Kentucky. Our Opinion, Our wish to you!. Page 4.

• Jan 9. Grant County News. Dry Ridge, Kentucky. WHAT 2 WATCH 4 by Bryan Marshall.
  "As of Jan. 7, the amount raised has exceeded $11.5 million."

• Jan 7. Ottawa Citizen. Ottawa, Canada. We must hope good sense returns to American discourse by J.L. Granatstein. Page A9.
  "Think of the many Americans who dismiss evolution as a cockeyed theory because of its conflict with Biblical tales. Consider the Creation Museum in Kentucky which argues that the world was created in six days. Or the efforts underway to build a Noah’s Ark, following the exact dimensions as given in scripture. This lunacy is bad enough, but anti-evolutionists control school boards in some states and determine how and what children can be taught. Vast majorities of Americans claim to attend church regularly — they don’t — and equal majorities believe in the devil."

• Jan 2. Grant County News. Dry Ridge, Kentucky. 2012 - What Made the News?. Page 1.

• Jan 2. Grant County News. Dry Ridge, Kentucky. 2012 WHAT MADE THE NEWS?.
  "Ark Encounter LLC closes on final piece of property for upcoming tourist project. With funding efforts impacted by sluggish economy, project will be built in phases."