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Readers react to Bass Pro Shops’ ambitious plans for Downtown’s Pyramid arena
Bass Pro Shops executives and Memphis city officials announced last week that the Bass Pro superstore at The Pyramid will be grander than previously planned. Added features are expected to include a glass-walled restaurant, bar and fishing memorabilia exhibit on a 300-foothigh observation deck, zip-line rides inside the building, and a tie-in with Memphis-based Ducks Unlimited. The observation deck will be accessed by double elevators and will feature glassfloored balconies on two sides. Here are excerpts from comments on a June 4 story at commercialappeal.com that reported the outdoor retailer’s plans.
ANONYMOUS BUCK EYE WROTE:
Just hurry up already. I am running low on worms and bullets.
MEMPHIS GOD FATHER WROTE:
So glad that they will now be using the observation deck — AWESOME views from up there!
VRIL WROTE:
I hear that, instead of going to Machu Picchu or the Taj Mahal, many world travelers are booking vacations to stand and bask in the splendor of the Great Pyramid of Bass Pro. We had better hope they do, because if (Robert) Lipscomb’s flaky tourism development zone tax-increment financing scheme doesn’t pan out, guess who will be left holding the unpaid debt bag.
BOGEYMAN WROTE:
Who knows, maybe Sidney Shlenker’s folly will amount to something after all, even though it was built in a 10-story hole (owned by a politically connected family), rather than on the bluff where it should have been. If they do everything they say they will with a sky ride and observation deck, it could be an attraction for someone other than the fishing/hunting bubbas, perhaps even become a serious competitor with the St. Louis Arch for folks who want a thrill ride and great view.
JW18833 WROTE:
... If Johnny Morris, the owner of Bass Pro, is so certain of the success and long-term viability of this project, then why doesn’t he just buy The Pyramid and fund the project himself?
CLJ9999 WROTE:
This is an amazing project. To be able to repurpose a sports arena is very rare. And to do so with a huge project like this is virtually unheard of. Big, difficult projects take time, but in the end this is going to be a huge deal for our city. Memphians should be proud of what is happening here.