Water Park Profile
Epic Waters Why go big when you can go epic?
Nestled in the heart of the Dallas-Fort Worth area, Texas city Grand Prairie welcomed an $88 million, 80,000 square foot indoor waterpark in January 2018. It forms part of the Grand Central Project, an all-ages destination that also includes a ten-acre (four hectare) all-inclusive playground and a 120,000 square foot (11,148 sq m) recreation centre.
I
t all began in 2015 when the ground broke and the ideas started flowing. Construction of Epic Waters Indoor Waterpark was underway and a legacy was beginning.
Mayor Ron Jensen had been brainstorming the idea since 2013 when he came into office, and the City of Grand Prairie and its officials wanted world-class facilities not only for their citizens, but also for visitors nationwide. Based on the success of ‘The Summit,’ a unique and award-winning fitness and wellness facility for citizens aged 50 and older, Grand Prairie knew that the project needed to be epic.
Igniting the spark With ambitions, budget and community support in place, there was just one thing missing. The City of Grand Prairie needed that ‘epic spark’: a management team that would go above and beyond to make its waterpark dreams a reality. That is when Rick met Rick, and both a friendship and partnership was born. Rick Herold, Grand Prairie’s director of parks, arts and recreation explained his and the city’s vision for the next big thing to hit Texas and the nation. Rick Coleman, principal of American Resort Management, took the vision and ran… or swam, rather. “Meeting the leaders of Grand Prairie felt like meeting people you instantly knew were going to become your
MARCH 2018
best friends,” Rick Coleman commented on the partnership. American Resort Management, which is based out of Erie, Pennsylvania, has multiple resorts, hotels, and waterparks throughout the United States. Along with the City of Grand Prairie, it assembled what it has called ‘The Epic Dream Team,’ consisting of a sales and marketing team, a food and beverage platform, an aquatics and safety program, and Michael Hays as general manager.
An all-weather attraction With all of the wheels in-motion, it was time for power tools and hard hats. One of the first design elements that came into effect was the state-of-the-art, retractable roof. This idea was brought to life by OpenAire, a Canadian-based company which designs, manufactures, and installs maintenance-free retractable roof systems for aquatic centres and venues. This roof creates a ‘wow’ factor and crucially, a weather-proof environment, meaning guests can enjoy the waterpark year- round.
The array of waterslides includes three ‘first of their kind’
attractions designed and built by WhiteWater West. The majority of the waterslides descend off of one slide tower,
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