Raging waters update

5/28/2020

Raging Waters has been a topic of intense interest for many of you. We asked Councilman Andrew Johnston to provide an update on the status of the park.

Here is what he provided:

"The park was originally built between 1977-1980 using federal funds with the agreement that it would only be used for outdoor recreation going forward. The 20+ acres is zoned as open space restricting any other non-recreational development on the site. In 2019, a new operator was under contract to reopen the park but after further review of the facilities it was determined that the buildings, and other facilities, were in much worse condition than previously known and it would need at least $20 million to repair and make it operable. That agreement was voided as no funding was identified. As of May 2020, the former waterpark is still empty and there has been no operator identified to reopen the park.

Over the past several months, we have had several fires in the park, and most recently, a high volume of people have broken into the premises.

Salt Lake City Parks, Real Estate and the Mayor’s office have stated that they intend to request funding from the city council, within the next several weeks, to provide 24hr security at the park and we will need to fund further weed control.

Moving forward, I would strongly advocate for a regional park with amenities that we do not have in other parks in the city. And keep it free, or deeply affordable for all local residents. I would love to keep a waterpark. However, a waterpark is very expensive, and I fear pricing local residents out of it if we were to go to a private operator who would need to recoup an investment. We could approach Salt Lake County, who already runs many regional parks across the county. The next round of county ZAP tax funding would not be voted on until 2024 and available in 2026 (I believe) if that funding were to be used for such a park.

The Mayor’s office reports that they would like to get neighborhood feedback regarding what to do with the park going forward and I encouraged them to do so as soon as possible."

15 Comments

Nichole

5/29/2020 08:42:35 am

Could we suggest a great splash pad/park like there used to be at the “Seven Canyons” at Liberty Park? There is a really great splash park that is like this at the Sandy Amphitheater. It would be really cool to have a nice park like this in our neighborhood.

Turner Bitton

5/29/2020 12:38:46 pm

Hi Nichole,

I love your ideas. On Monday, the community council will be announcing a new community planning project and we would love to have you involved.

We'll be gathering resident feedback on our parks, streets, and areas like the waterpark. We'd love to have your participation.

If you are interested, would you please email me at the email below?

Thanks,
Turner C. Bitton
Chair, Glendale Community Council
chair@glendaleutah.org

Shasta Lawton

5/30/2020 03:50:34 pm

Some permaculture food forestry would be nice to see here too...

Keith Reidford link

5/29/2020 10:17:15 am

A white water park could be a simple solution...

5/29/2020 12:39:30 pm

Hi Keith,

I love this idea. We're going to be announcing a new community planning project and we would love to have you involved.

We'll be gathering resident feedback on our parks, streets, and areas like the waterpark. We'd love to have your participation.

If you are interested, would you please email me at the email below?

Thanks,
Turner C. Bitton
Chair, Glendale Community Council
chair@glendaleutah.org

Kerri Pavlica

6/3/2020 12:43:31 am

I live on Emery st and Lexington Avenue I propose that you put in street humps on our road PLEASE?? You wouldn't believe how fast people go on our street we have had 3 accident's right out front of our house people hitting parked cars going so fast. It's in real and children play close to that street it's a bad deal waiting to happen.. Please consider putting road humps in.

Roxanne langi link

5/29/2020 07:22:46 pm

Back when I was younger it was just the wave pool. Maybe we could take down all of those neck breaking slides, do a splash pad/lunch Pavillion’s for the community to gather in. Maybe making it a year round thing that goes into a ice rink. Outside the community would have access to it but community would get first dibs

Lance Hemmert

5/30/2020 07:24:02 am

Can Andrew of the Glendale Chair get the numbers from the utilities department regarding water costs during the park's operational years? It might be helpful if residents can see what some basic operational costs are in order to determine a best practices use moving forward.

For example, if the community wants splash pads we have to take into account the cost of the buildout, mechanical maintenance, water usage costs, grounds maintenance, etc. This will have to be worked into a multi-tier budget which will be contracted out and paid for by taxes. There'll be a lot of planning involved and the costs will be significant and a bond will most likely be involved?

Personally I'd prefer to see a conservation garden go into the space that would be low'ish maintenance, budget friendly, pollinator friendly, and be a lovely place to take families for a visit. A good example of what I'm talking about is this:

https://conservationgardenpark.org/

We could encourage, through this park, the spread of good water practices, protecting spaces for wildlife, and have a space that's inspirational for westside residents where they would most likely implement design elements into their own yards. Also, a curated space that's actively managed with onsite personnel would reduce crime, transiency, and whatever other undesirable activities we as a community don't like.

Dyani Wood

5/30/2020 03:14:29 pm

I LOVE the idea of making it a conservation garden park. If you've ever been to this one https://conservationgardenpark.org/ and taken any of their free/low cost classes, you know they are a really cool community asset!! And there are rebate programs for making use of the low-water methods taught at that garden that SLC residents cannot qualify for because the Salt Lake public water system won't agree to participate.

5/30/2020 04:10:23 pm

I can’t see an edit feature for comments. I meant to say, “Can Andrew OR the Glendale Chair...”

Janette Gonzales

5/31/2020 06:33:54 am

I’m in a agreement with Lance Hemmert, a nice conversational garden park where families could meet for lunch/dinner maybe have food trucks, or small food vendors! We could also get ideas for beautifying our own yards, maybe we could have classes where a Horticulturist could help some of us who love working in our yards, or anyone in our community who knows a lot about flowers and plants! Maybe add in a small water pad, but I can see where the water idea could run into problems and extra costs!

Gina Hiatt

5/31/2020 09:25:13 am

What about a simple out door pool and splash pad for younger children. A nice park with some pavilions for gatherings. Provide a smaller parking area to promote local use.

Also create a conservation garden focusing on native plants and trees, this can all tie into the Jordan river and walk way.

Lauren Cetlin

5/31/2020 10:06:04 pm

I with the Westside of SLC had an Olympic size outdoor pool!
And with the Jordan River next to that piece of land have kayaks for rent.

Lashell

6/1/2020 01:30:09 pm

With the hills that are already there, it would make a good area to rock climb or mt bike as well as splash pads ect.
I’m thinking something similar to Woodward in Park City but more affordable for residents.
They have, trampoline area, pump track, foam pits, indoor skate park, etc.
A cool sledding hill would be amazing.

Tracy Woodard

6/24/2020 01:35:52 pm

What good is having a private security company there. I drove by could not see the guard in his car so I turned around and drove through the parking lot. The guard had the driver seat reclined and he was asleep in his car. Another waste of tax dollars!!!!

What's going on in Glendale?