Ken Ham responds to reports about low turnout at Ark Encounter

Ken Ham, founder of creationist organization Answers in Genesis, has recently written a blog refuting reports about low turnout at the Ark Encounter theme park in Kentucky.

In a blog published on the Answers in Genesis website, Ham said that several mainstream media outlets, blogs and secularist group websites have been spreading reports to make the public believe that the Ark Encounter attraction "is a dismal failure."

Ham pointed to an article written by Linda Blackford for the Lexington Herald-Leader, with the headline, "Town expected flood of business after Noah's Ark opened. So far, it's a trickle."

In the article, Blackford wrote about a restaurant that specializes in gourmet hot dogs called Shem's Snack Shack, which is located about a mile away from the theme park.

Matt Griffith, a co-owner of the restaurant who moved from West Virginia to Kentucky last September, has reportedly stated that the hordes of customers have not appeared yet, and he is closing down the outlet for three months over the winter.

However, Ham said that Blackford left out a bit of information in her article that "totally skewed her piece and hid the whole truth."

The famed creationist said that he had contacted Griffith who told him in an email: "Very interesting that she put that 'we closed down,' because that was something she asked me about. I explained it was due to the sewer lines needing replaced. So I guess she somewhat skewed what I said."

Blackford also interviewed Bren Murphy, the owner of the Gallery Coffee Shop, who allegedly said that tourists are just not visiting her shop.

"The Ark's growth is great for their success. But until we see some of that here, it's really not done as well as we hoped," Murphy told Blackford.

But Ham pointed out that after Blackford published her article, Murphy stated on her Facebook page that her shop has been getting a "wonderful flow of visitors with approx 4% of my recorded sales being from Ark Visitors" since the outlet opened in October 2016.

Ham further noted that a positive quote from Dry Ridge Mayor Jim Wells that summarizes the economic impact of Ark Encounter in the county was buried toward the end of Blackford's article.

The Answers in Genesis founder said that he recently contacted the mayor who shared a few details to him about upcoming projects in the county.

Wells reportedly said that plans are underway for three new hotels and three new restaurants in Dry Ridge following the opening of Ark Encounter. The mayor also noted that a pizzeria is expanding because of tourists, and it even has a room themed as an "Ark room."

"Locals have found that they now find it difficult to get into restaurants like Cracker Barrel as they are so crowded from Ark tourists," the mayor was quoted as saying.

America's Research Group had estimated that there will be between 1.4 million and 2.2 million visitors to the Ark Encounter in its first year. Park co-founder Mike Zovath said that the theme park will attract its one millionth visitor by July.