Related: Sunshine Coast Water Park / Update On The Potential Privatisation of Village
Village Roadshow Limited ("VRL") announces that a subsidiary has signed a conditional agreement to build and operate a major water theme park in Sydney, Australia.
To be called Wet ?n’ Wild Sydney, the park will be built on a 25-hectare site at Prospect under a long term lease agreement with the New South Wales Government and is expected to open in the summer of 2013/14. VRL will invest approximately $80 million in the project which is subject to finance and various planning approvals.
Announcing the development, Village Roadshow Chairman, Robert Kirby, said: “We are very excited about the opportunity to bring our highly successful water theme park concept to Sydney, this is a huge step forward for one of our foundation businesses and to develop Wet ‘n’ Wild Sydney.”
Wet ‘n’ Wild Sydney will be developed into one of the world’s best water theme parks showcasing the very latest and best in high-tech thrills and family entertainment. Situated adjacent to the M4 freeway in the geographic heart of Sydney, it will be a world-class destination and attract up to one million visitors a year, including interstate and overseas tourists.
VRL is Australia’s largest theme park owner and operator with successful Wet ‘n’ Wild water theme parks on Queensland’s Gold Coast and in Phoenix, Arizona and in Hawaii.
VRL will immediately commence preparations to lodge a Major Project Application with the NSW Department of Planning including development consent under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act. The new park will employ state-of-the-art water efficient design, filtration and recycling technology to maximise water re-use on site.
Part of the development cost includes a contribution of $5.2 million by VRL towards funding improvements to the surrounding road network by the NSW Roads and Traffic Authority so that enhanced traffic infrastructure will be completed prior to the park opening.
VRL will fund the preliminary development of the new park out of a combination of existing cash reserves and undrawn debt facilities, and will seek new finance to fund the final construction cost.
