A new Schiltterbahn water park will open in two years in Cedar Park. It’s slated to be smaller than the New Braunfels location. Officials say plans for the park take into consideration frequent drought conditions in Central Texas, much like the region is experiencing now.
Schlitterbahn Water Parks and Resorts' new Cedar Park location is about two years from opening. The project is expected to cost $360 million and generate more than 1,000 jobs. But a company spokesperson maintains the new location won't be using as much water as people might think.
Schlitterbahn spokesman Jeffrey Siebert told KUT News that they can't speculate on the new park's expected water use, but it will be much lower than what's used at their New Braunfels park. He said that park uses 32 gallons per person per day. That’s only a third of the national per-person usage of a single-family home. Siebert added the Cedar Park Schlitterbahn will use a water system that is completely “closed, recirculated, and refiltered.” Other precautions will be taken to ensure water responsibility.
“We do have what we call a Water Waste Team,” Siebert said. “They’re constantly out making sure that our faucets don’t drip, that our fixtures and facilities are running correctly, that nothing is leaking - there’s no leaky pipes.”
For its part, the City of Cedar Park says Schlitterbahn will be subject to any water restrictions the city has to enact, because the park will get water from the city’s utility. Cedar Park water officials could require the new Schlitterbahn to curtail hours or even to shutdown, if drought conditions become too severe. But Jenny Huerta, the city's media and communications manager, said at least Stage Two water restrictions would have to be in place before it would consider that. She added that Cedar Park has never had water restrictions greater than Stage Two.
At the moment, Cedar Park is under voluntary water restrictions.
