REAL ESTATE : Profitable Fun Zone Rides Are Still on the Block for $2.5 Million After a Year

About a year ago, Joe Tunstall was oiling the bumper cars at the Fun Zone--Newport Beach’s vest-pocket amusement park--and explaining why he was tired of owning the merry-go-round, the small Ferris wheel and the “Scary Dark Ride.”

Running the Fun Zone rides is a profitable business, and was even fun for a while, said Tunstall, who collects amusement-park rides on the side.

But it’s also a lot of work for a guy who’s in his 50s and has already made a bundle from a bike shop and wants to spend it traveling.

So, Tunstall said a year ago, he and a partner were putting the rides on the Balboa Peninsula up for sale. (The Fun Zone building itself belongs to a Japanese businessman; the rides are on a 20-year lease.)

But no serious takers have come forward as yet, Tunstall said a few days ago. He’s asking $2.5 million.

He said that the rides brought in about $1.1 million last year--up 10% from the year before--and that the owners cleared around $400,000 before taxes.

“No product costs,” Tunstall said, explaining the high profit margin.

“We’ve had offers, but they’ve been on the ridiculous side,” he said. “I don’t need to get out of here that bad. I just want to get out.” It looks, however, like he’s in the amusement-park business for a while yet.