A council-approved incentive package worth around $13.8 million has significantly advanced Ryman Hospitality’s plans for a new water park complex at its Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Centre in Nashville.
According to The Tennessean, the cost of the 217,000-square-foot SoundWaves water park is in the region of $90 million.
Significantly, the new facility will be open to hotel patrons only.
Colin Reed, Ryman’s CEO and Chairman, described SoundWaves as a ‘waterpark on steroids’ and promised it would be the first luxury water park of its kind in the US.
It is set to include year-round in-door and outdoor attractions. Plans feature a lazy river, wave pool, an adult bar area, and multiple slide towers. Further entertainment options include live music and theatre-sized television screens.
Hotel guests will be able to access the water park directly from inside the hotel.
Furthermore, the deal with the council includes a target for ‘substantial completion’ by September 2019.
There were some dissenting voices within the council who argued that locals would not benefit from the park.
However, most agreed that the benefits of new employment opportunities and tax revenues far outweighed those concerns.
An economic study commissioned by Ryman found that the new waterpark would boost the local economy by $185 million a year.
Concept images courtesy Ryman Hospitality.
https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/2017/02/21/council-advances-14m-incentives-opryland-water-park/98191506/
