In a recent and rare interview for the Wall Street Journal, Ron Burkle finally talks about his latest purchase: The Neverland Ranch.
The News agent had a private tour of the property and it is revealed that the neighbor’s cows are still permitted on the 2,700 acres property.
Burkle, 68 years old, bought the property last year for $22 million and rumors had it that he planned to turn the ranch into a private club destination. But Mr. Burkle maintains that he has few grand plans beyond restoring the property and describes the deal as a land grab. “It’s just not a bad thing to have your money tied up in,” he says.
Burkle also owned, restored and sold the Frank Lloyd Wright’s Ennis House in Los Feliz where 3T and Michael filmed “WHY”.
Burkle and Michael Jackson, Neverland’s original owner, had a history. Mr. Burkle said he visited the ranch in the mid-2000s as part of a program for disadvantaged children and hit it off with Mr. Jackson. He said the pop star called him the next day to say that he liked him and that, from now on, he would buy all his groceries at Mr. Burkle’s stores. Mr. Burkle served as an adviser to the singer on business matters, when the pop star was working to stave off financial disaster.
He said that their relationship had little to do with the purchase and he was curious about the ranch and the remains of the train tracks, the empty zoo enclosures… “Michael Jackson hasn’t lived there in over 15 years,” he said, adding that he had fallen in love with the land and purchased the ranch from his friend Tom Barrack, an investor who heads Colony Capital, which co-owned the property with the Jackson estate after Michael Jackson defaulted on a loan.
Ongoing construction at the ranch has fed speculation about whether Burkle may be interested in turning Neverland into a Soho House but he said it isn’t the case. He said his team is working on restoring parts of the ranch that were falling apart from neglect, such as replacing pipes. The train station, modeled after one at Disneyland, and which had been damaged by woodpeckers, is being restored, as is the Neverland flower clock. Many of the roads have also been upgraded. Mr. Burkle said he hopes that one day one of the trains may run again.
“It was kind of a depressing place. It wasn’t the beautiful place that it was before. It just needed flowers and life in it again,” he said.
He hasn’t talked about the fact that rides were put back within the property and what his intentions are for the future as the restorations are still ongoing.
The property also includes a 12,000-square-foot Normandy-style mansion, guesthouses, a swimming pool with a cabana, a basketball court, a tennis court and a 50-seat movie theater. Mr. Gleason said the homes are in good condition.
It is still unclear to what the plans for the property to be but we will keep you updated.
SOURCE: The Wall Street Journal
I do hope and pray that Mr. Burkle continues to upgrade and restore this beautiful ranch. Michael Jackson loved Neverland. It was his home, his place of solace and creativity. The only reason he left it was being falsely accused of molesting a 13-yea-old boy. It destroyed him and he no longer wished to live there amid all the terrible memories of 70-plus sheriffs descending upon it, ransacking it in a failed attempt to uncover pornography or anything that would paint Michael as a pedophile. He was found NOT GUILTY of 12 felony counts at a June 2005 trial. It would be wonderful if Neverland was turned into a museum of Michael Jackson history and also a joyful place for children to come and enjoy an amusement park atmosphere once again. Thank you, Mr. Burkle.