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Floating a proposal to build a water park in the middle of a recession is an idea you’d expect to sink faster than the price of homes after the housing bubble burst.
Manteca, though, has several suitors lined up including one promising to put at least $2 million on the table for a chance to develop a water park on municipal property immediately next to the Big League Dreams sports complex.
Manteca Mayor Willie Weatherford noted the interested firms are talking about creating upwards of 200 seasonal jobs that would be filled primarily with teens and college students much like similar positions were at the original Manteca Waterslides that closed more than five years ago after a 30-year run.
The mayor also pointed to the money that the water park could generate for the city’s businesses that in turn collect taxes and pay employees. On the Fourth of July weekend, a three-day youth softball tournament with 90 teams generated in excess of $500,000 in terms of impacts on the Manteca economy for lodging, food and gas purchases. The Manteca Visitors Bureau uses state supplied multipliers for visitors to determine the impact of 90 teams with 11 players each plus coaching as well as parents and family members that accompanied them. The tournament was a regional competition.
The water park feasibility study will be back before the City Council on Tuesday, July 13. The council is spending $27,700 in Manteca Redevelopment Agency funds to hire AECOM to perform a water park feasibility study. They also hired AKF Development – with no cost upfront – to try and market municipal property saddling the future extension of Daniels Street immediately west of Costco and Big League Dreams for both a water park and a hotel.
AKF Development has reportedly already lined up two potential partners. The Manteca-based development team – should the deal go through – would be paid for their services by the firm that ends up developing a water park.
The goal is to have AKF use the study to try and lure a developer who would buy the municipal land and build a water park.
A Big League Dreams sports park and water park combination in Texas has enjoyed major success.
Reports indicate the firms were immediately drawn to the Manteca proposal due to the city’s location, the strong name recognition that Manteca Waterslides had as California’s original water park, the 400,000-plus annual BLD visitors plus the 2.7 million annual visitors that go to Bass Pro Shops just a mile away.
The Brown family that started the original waterslides at Oakwood Lake Resorts was forced out of business by a state requirement that was mandating they add a water treatment facility to clean the ground water they used in the water park despite going 30 years without a major problem. The cost was in the millions of dollars. It also didn’t help that the state’s workmen’s compensation costs were hitting them in the pocketbook as well.
Manteca, though, has several suitors lined up including one promising to put at least $2 million on the table for a chance to develop a water park on municipal property immediately next to the Big League Dreams sports complex.
Manteca Mayor Willie Weatherford noted the interested firms are talking about creating upwards of 200 seasonal jobs that would be filled primarily with teens and college students much like similar positions were at the original Manteca Waterslides that closed more than five years ago after a 30-year run.
The mayor also pointed to the money that the water park could generate for the city’s businesses that in turn collect taxes and pay employees. On the Fourth of July weekend, a three-day youth softball tournament with 90 teams generated in excess of $500,000 in terms of impacts on the Manteca economy for lodging, food and gas purchases. The Manteca Visitors Bureau uses state supplied multipliers for visitors to determine the impact of 90 teams with 11 players each plus coaching as well as parents and family members that accompanied them. The tournament was a regional competition.
The water park feasibility study will be back before the City Council on Tuesday, July 13. The council is spending $27,700 in Manteca Redevelopment Agency funds to hire AECOM to perform a water park feasibility study. They also hired AKF Development – with no cost upfront – to try and market municipal property saddling the future extension of Daniels Street immediately west of Costco and Big League Dreams for both a water park and a hotel.
AKF Development has reportedly already lined up two potential partners. The Manteca-based development team – should the deal go through – would be paid for their services by the firm that ends up developing a water park.
The goal is to have AKF use the study to try and lure a developer who would buy the municipal land and build a water park.
A Big League Dreams sports park and water park combination in Texas has enjoyed major success.
Reports indicate the firms were immediately drawn to the Manteca proposal due to the city’s location, the strong name recognition that Manteca Waterslides had as California’s original water park, the 400,000-plus annual BLD visitors plus the 2.7 million annual visitors that go to Bass Pro Shops just a mile away.
The Brown family that started the original waterslides at Oakwood Lake Resorts was forced out of business by a state requirement that was mandating they add a water treatment facility to clean the ground water they used in the water park despite going 30 years without a major problem. The cost was in the millions of dollars. It also didn’t help that the state’s workmen’s compensation costs were hitting them in the pocketbook as well.
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