New Waterpark - Rumor - (10/8/01) Screamscape’s sources informed us this week of a fact that most people don’t know. While Universal does own the property the resort sits on as well as the Lockheed Expansion site, they only lease the land that Wet ‘n Wild sits on. This goes back to the previous owners it seems who set up a long term lease when the park was built. It seems there are still a few years left on the current lease but no one is willing to say how many. Those are the facts.
From here on is just speculation and opinion on my part only. With the value of land on I-Drive going for a reported $1 million an acre down by the convention center, it would make sence that land Wet ‘n Wild uses, two corner front properties on I-Drive and Universal, would certainly be very valuable to other developers as well. Any land owner would be foolish to not investigate other options at this point, plus if the park is to stay on site, they will have to work out some kind of new lease agreement, something that is bound to cost Universal more than they are paying right now. Now remember that Universal currently owns more than enough empty land to build a brand new waterpark anywhere they want. Adding an actual “on site” waterpark next to the Royal Pacific site would certainly bring up the value of their resort hotels. In the industry, waterparks are popular right now and this would give Universal the chance to build a real themed waterpark experience instead of the more bland look of the current park in comparison to the Disney waterparks.
