The Vista City Council on Tuesday approved $3.5 million for critical repairs to the city-owned Wave Waterpark.
The meeting also got heated over the issue of long-term maintenance and whether to turn the park’s management over to a third party.
Why it matters
The waterpark is more than 30 years old and needs safety updates and cosmetic improvements. But there is also the issue of continued maintenance. City staff estimates $360,000 a year for the next decade.
The question is: "How to pay for it?"
Vista Mayor John Franklin said letting a private entity take over the management of the park could be a way to do it.
"Right now, we're in shortfall every year just on the required maintenance, and we're losing $1 million," Franklin said. "So when a private operator mentioned to me that they believe that we could turn that $1 million annual loss into $1 million annual profit, I said, 'That's the money we need to reinvest into the facilities to make sure the Wave is protected for generations to come.'”
Closer Look
Franklin is not suggesting the city sell the Wave. He said he wants to explore the option of having a third-party operator manage it — not only to give the facility a facelift, but also to improve its marketing to bring in more visitors.
"We've got to create demand to visit our water park," he said. "That's something that our marketing campaign from a private operator might be able to do."
There was some resistance from other council members on that issue.
"We might not have the answers, but neither do (private entities)," Deputy Mayor Katie Melendez said. "What common-sense steps can we take to have better facilities and what resources can we use to market those facilities to our potential customers?"
Ultimately, the council directed staff to prepare a request for proposal and bring it back at a later date for discussion.
