NEWS: New Hawaiian Falls Water Park in the Austin area

[jps294]

$21.5 million dollar water and adventure park to open in Pflugerville spring 2014

 

PFLUGERVILLE, Texas -- The city of Pflugerville will have another way to cool off next year with a new water park approved Tuesday.

 

The Pflugerville city council approved economic development grants for Hawaiian Falls water park and adventure park.

 

The new development will cost $21.5 million. Developers say it will span 25 acres and will be built near the southwest corner of SH 130 and FM 685. David Busch, president of Horizon Family Holdings, which has developed and operated 24 waterparks across the U.S. including Hawaiian Falls, said the Pflugerville park will cover approximately 10 acres, the adventure park will span five acres, and the remaining acreage will be used for parking and future expansion.

 

City leaders say they expect more than 3,000 guests and some $6.2 million in expected sales for the first year.

The Pflugerville Community Development Corporation Executive Director Floyd Akers says over the next 30 years, the economic impact will be about 700-million dollars.

 

For Pflugerville that is dramatic. Obviously that's great for Pflugerville. I also think it's great for the Austin region," Akers said.

One reason, jobs.

 

“This is a significant economic development win for Pflugerville for multiple reasons,” Akers said.

 

The city says the new water park will create 250-300 seasonal jobs, an additional 100 year-round jobs and 15-20 full-time jobs with benefits. City leaders say the new water park will also spur additional development in the area.

 

“Pflugerville will become a regional destination for Central Texas residents. In addition to bringing additional tax revenue to the city, this project will also provide additional funding to the PCDC for economic development, provide jobs to local teenagers and adults, and spur additional development such as hotels in the area,” Akers said.

 

The Pflugerville location will be the largest Hawaiian Falls waterpark in Texas, and the first in Texas with an adventure park. Hawaiian Falls also has waterparks in Garland, The Colony, Mansfield, Roanoke and Waco, Texas.

 

By selecting Pflugerville for Hawaiian Falls’ expansion into Central Texas, Busch said it puts the park within a 25-minute drive of more than 2 million people regionally. It will be the only waterpark of this size within an hour drive.

 

“We selected Pflugerville because of the business friendly atmosphere and perfect demographics,” Busch said. “We wanted a high concentration of children and families, good highway access, regional employers, great weather and people who enjoy the outdoors. Pflugerville provided all that and more.”

 

Busch said his team has been in search of the right location and partnership in the Austin area since 2003. Horizon met with six or seven other cities in the region before choosing Pflugerville.

 

“Pflugerville was the absolute best choice,” Busch said. “They were interested and responsive in working with us to bring Hawaiian Falls to fruition. We need to move quickly to make this project a reality for summer 2014, and Pflugerville is a ‘can do’ community that will make this happen.”

 

The PCDC will acquire and own the 25 acre tract of land for the project. Hawaiian Falls will develop and operate the parks under a 30-year lease agreement with two 10-year options to renew.

 

Pflugerville residents and City of Pflugerville employees will receive a discount on daily tickets and season passes, available for sale soon.

 

When the park opens, tickets for the day will be about 30 dollars for adults, $20 for kids, with a season pass under 70-dollars.

 

LINK

 

This is going to be great for the Austin area. And I live like 2 minutes from the new water park when Im not in Mississippi!!

Edited February 24, 2014 by jedimaster1227

[boardwalkbullet91507]

I have family that lives in Pflugerville! I guess I'll have to go visit the park. . . I mean my family.

 

And before this gets asked, believe me it does, the city is pronounced 'floo-ger-vill', with a strong G.

[Jew]

Keep Austin weird?

[simon8899]

^^German founders perhaps? Pflug = Plow

[jps294]

I have family that lives in Pflugerville! I guess I'll have to go visit the park. . . I mean my family.

 

And before this gets asked, believe me it does, the city is pronounced 'floo-ger-vill', with a strong G.

 

I love when people find out I'm from Pflugerville as the saying gets them...

 

According to KXAN, they called the city of Cedar Park about the new proposed Schlitterbahn Cedar Park after the announcement in Pflugerville and they told the the news station that the park is delayed indefinitely. Link

So that is great news for Hawaiian Falls as the next closes water park from Austin is in New Braunfels.

[gisco]

City leaders say they expect more than 3,000 guests and some $6.2 million in expected sales for the first year.

 

Must be a typo, only 3,000 guests the first year? Not very crowded

[cfc]

^So, 3,000 guests at more than $2,000 a head?

[Jew]

Well, it is Austin. They have to do things differently there!

 

I'm assuming they meant at least 3,000 guests per day.

[_koppen]

No, they meant 300,000 a season.

[jedimaster1227]

http://www.bizjournals.com/austin/news/2014/02/22/waterpark-debt-fears-overblown-city-economic.html?page=all

 

Pflugerville Community Development Corp. Executive Director Floyd Akers is confident that the city's backing of a $23.5 million loan to Hawaiian Falls Waterpark is a sound financial decision, despite a recent downgrade of the city's debt rating by Moody's.

 

At the end of 2013, the Pflugerville Community Development Corp. – a separate entity from the city – agreed to underwrite a $23.5 million loan to Hawaiian Falls from Mclean, Va.-based Capital One Financial Corp. (NYSE: COF). The city also agreed to a separate, shorter-term $7 million loan to allow the PCDC to purchase the 22-acre site for Hawaiian Falls. That loan was paid back on Feb. 21.

 

The $23.5 million loan includes a lien on the PCDC's annual income of about $3 million from a one-half cent sales tax. Hawaiian Falls is responsible for the loan's $1.4 million annual note, and the development corporation will step in if the park is unable to pay. If the PCDC is unable to pay, the city of Pflugerville has agreed to step in.

 

Akers said arriving at such a worst-case scenario is all but impossible, and cited strong sales tax growth that has boosted revenue. "Unless half of Pflugerville burns down, there's no way we can't repay them," he said.

 

In addition, he noted, if both the development group and Hawaiian falls are unable to pay, Pflugerville City Council will authorize its payments on the loan. The deal didn't include any further options if the council decides not to pay, he said.

 

Still, that wasn't enough assurance for Moody's Investors Service Inc., which moved the city's credit rating down two notches on its scale to A1. Moody's described the waterpark loan as an unusual and additional risk in its report.

 

Akers said Moody's didn't adequately evaluate the situation. He cited a conflicting analysis by Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC which upgraded the city's debt.

"What’s probably going to happen is we'll have a great summer," Akers said, "and we’ll be upgraded probably by September or November."

 

Separately, Pflugerville City Council has voted to delay a $30 million road and park improvement bond referendum that was to be held in May, in part due to the Moody's downgrade.

[jps294]

Here's an update of the new water park in North East Austin (Pflugerville) before it opens to the public this Friday June 6, 2014. The park was originally suppose to open during Memorial Day Weekend but due to the crazy weather here in Central Texas in the past months, the park pushed back it opening day.

 

I know it's just a small water park and not BIG news to y'all across the world, but this will be extremely successful for being in the city of Austin and the rest of Central Texas. Residents would either have to travel to New Braunfels for Schlitterbahn or travel to Waco to another Hawaiian Falls water park that is highly unknown to people here. This will be the first type of amusement/water park in Austin's backyard and literally in mine as you can see it from my Neighborhood, that is walking distance to the park!! And according to this article, Austin is the fastest-growing large city in America with 110 new residents every day.

 

So looking at this Beautiful looking park, it truly makes me feel nervous about how small this park is (25 acres) coming to a city that desperately needs it for the Hot summer months. Hopefully the park will get expanded soon!

 

My only rant is that out-of-the seven Hawaiian Falls parks, this will be the first location to charge for parking ($5).

Maybe it's because its a new water park? Well Hawaiian Falls is also building another park in the Fort Worth area and they will have no charge. So you will see me and my family walking to the park.

 

Time for pictures!

All this land for this small park to expand!

The water park can be seen miles away!

Seen from my Neighborhood.

Pineapple Express

[bert425]

Hope they are successful. . .

 

but as you know (if you watch the local news), they are getting a TON of grief over building this, and then raising the red flags that Pflugerville is facing water shortages.

 

they are absolutely getting raked over the coals for the City approving this park, during a drought . . and then to advise that there are upcoming water shortages?.. they need some better PR people representing the park.

 

I'm in Cedar Park. . so not too far up the road from ya. . and I can say that folks around here are saying they will not go to Pfluger for Hawaiian Falls. . .but people threaten boycott all the time.

 

so I DO really hope they find success.

 

the charge for parking is . . "odd". . .