Friday, September 26th, 2008.
Issue 39, Volume 8.

The story of a planned water park has as many twists and turns as one of its slides.

After the City of Temecula gave Clearwater Waterpark Development the permit to move in, residents sued the city.

After a judge ruled in favor of the residents, the permits were revoked.

Now, the developer is exploring a new site for its park, which will include an artificial flowing river, water slides, shops and amenities, according to a city document.

On Sept. 9, Temecula’s City Council agreed to hire a consultant to examine the effects the water park would have on the surrounding area.

This decision came after owners of property near the water park’s originally proposed site sued the city for relying too heavily on the developer’s own research. The judge ruled in favor of the property owners and ordered the city to hire impartial consultants to study the sites under consideration.

The developer has repaid the city for the cost of hiring the consultant.

Potential sites

Clearwater Waterpark Development is currently considering a 32-acre plot of city-owned property on Dendy Parkway and Diaz Road, according to Temecula Mayor Mike Naggar.

The site was to be the location of a grandiose college campus housing several universities’ satellite programs and low-income housing.

The college campus deal fell apart last year when the developer, AGK Group, failed to meet numerous requirements on its deadline.

As part of the deal with AGK, the city graded the site and made other improvements totaling $8 million. Now, the city is negotiating exclusively with The RC Hobbs Company to develop the land.

According to Naggar, Clearwater is considering partnering with RC Hobbs to create the water park as part of Hobbs’ land development plans.

The location Clearwater originally proposed sits on Ynez Road north of Winchester Road.

The initial plans for the park – called Splash Canyon – covered nine acres and left several acres empty for future growth, according to city documents.

Park’s past

Naggar came up with the idea to build a water park in 2000. Shortly thereafter, the city conducted a “water park feasibility study” to see if the community could support one.

The study came back positive and the city began to look for interested developers.

In 2006, the city gave Clearwater a permit to put the park on the Ynez Road site but this angered local property owners.

The park would congest traffic at an already badly congested intersection, David Hubbard, an attorney for a nearby property owner, said at the meeting in 2006. Moreover, the city relied on Clearwater’s own traffic studies in giving the permit.

“The laws regarding disclosure have not been followed,” he said. “If we get a [disinterested third party] to do a traffic study, we might get a viewpoint that is less invested.”

Local property owners sued the city the month after it approved Clearwater’s permit.

In 2007, a judge ruled on the side of the property owners, saying the city used its right of discretion with “prejudice” and had violated the California Environmental Quality Act by failing to demand to see an Environmental Impact Report created by an impartial source, according to court records.

City officials stated at the 2006 council meeting the park would have less of an impact than most other uses, such as an office building, because it would only be open for four months annually. Additionally, the park would create traffic at times when the Ynez Road and Winchester Road intersection is un-congested.

The judge disagreed. “There was substantial evidence in the record supporting a fair argument that the proposed water park project may have a significant impact,” a record of the judge’s decision stated about the traffic and parking near the water park’s proposed site.

City officials have stood behind the proposed water park. “There will be a water park in Temecula, we just need to be really careful where it’s put…to be sure it doesn’t impair people’s quality of life,” Naggar said in an interview earlier this week.

The city has signed a $119,900 contract with a consultant to conduct the study on the water park’s potential impact on the surrounding area. The water park has already repaid the city for fronting the money and contracting the consultant.

While searching for a site for Splash Canyon, Clearwater is preparing to close move Wild Rivers, its 30-acre water park in Irvine.

Clearwater’s lease with the Irvine Company will expire next year, forcing Wild Rivers to pack up and move.

(Conceptual Apartment Rendering)

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Source: The Village News