Budget cuts put damper on planned water park

By Jeremy Twitchell

Thursday, Oct. 16, 2008 | midnight

One of the first casualties of Henderson's recently announced budget cuts is a proposed water park that would have been built off of St. Rose Parkway.

Two years ago, with the economy still going strong and Henderson's budget in healthy shape, city officials came up with the idea of finding a private partner for a joint recreation facility on nearly 18 acres of city land on the southeast corner of St. Rose Parkway and Maryland Parkway.

Last year, the city issued a formal request for proposals and got two responses — both to build a water park — but last Tuesday, the City Council unanimously rejected both. City Attorney Shauna Hughes said the decision came because council members, citing the projected $28.2 million revenue shortfall announced earlier in the week, wanted to look generate more revenue from the property.

"The general feeling I got from the council is that they weren't comfortable going forward with this in these economic times," Hughes said. "It really wasn't a reflection on either of the bids so much as it was a concern for the economic situation."

While the joint development approach would have netted some income for the city, Hughes said, the amount would have been minimal. The original priority, she said, was to provide a recreational opportunity for residents with no regard to how much revenue it generated. However, she said, the economic downturn has forced the city to change its priorities.

The city is in the process of re-evaluating its plans for all undeveloped city properties to determine their most valuable use, whether it be to sell them or put them up for long-term leases, Hughes said.

"(Council members) want to make sure that there isn't a better bang for your buck," Hughes said.

Though finances were the main reason for the bid rejections, Hughes said there was more to it.

"I guess it goes without saying that there's a concern for the water issue as well," she said.

Jeremy Twitchell can be reached at 990-8928 or jeremy.twitchell@hbcpub.com.