A decision on the site for a $175m (£96.9m, €121.6m) bible-themed attraction is expected in the next few days, according to the project's developers California-based Entertainment Development Group (EDG).
The project, called Bible Park USA, was originally planned for a 275-acre site in Rutherford County's Blackman community in Tennesse but a new location is being sought following objections from local residents. The new site, expected to be located in either Tennessee or Kentucky, will be announced at the end of the month.
The religious park, which will boast a mix of education and entertainment features, will depict biblical stories through a series of at least six areas including the Old Testament, the New Testament, as well as a childrens' and a teens' area.
The proposed attractions include an indoor 'Exodus Experience' where visitors can walk between 25-foot high walls of water displaying a projected film about the parting of the Red Sea in Egypt. There will also be an indoor Bible Fly-Through Ride, which allows guests to journey through Jerusalem and a large-scale recreation of Noah's Ark.
When completed, the park will also feature a music recording studio, a covered amphitheatre for music concerts, a museum with rotating biblical exhibitions, a theatre and a group study centre.
BRC Imagination Arts developed the core concept for the park in collaboration with masterplanners HOK Sports Venue Event and consultants RPM Transportation, The O'Hanlon Group, SH Acoustics and Barge Wagoner Sumner & Cannon engineers.
EDG will operate the attraction, which was originally going to be built and run by New-York based investment firm SafeHarbor Holdings, before it decided to hand the project over to EDG.
The development will be the second biblical-themed park to be built in the US, and will accompany the Holyland Experience in Orlando which opened in 2001.
