SALT LAKE CITY — The Salt Lake City Council took input Tuesday night on the Glendale Regional Park Plan, which will replace the abandoned former water park known as Raging Waters, which closed its gates back in 2018.
A half dozen people took to the podium during the public comment period of the council's formal meeting Tuesday night. Everyone who spoke gave a glowing review of what they thought the plan could bring to the area.
"We are so excited to get this, plus the other parks all deserve their other pieces too. We just want it built, but we want built like it's promised," said Margaret Holloway, who is in favor of the plan.
The renovation of the area is being funded by the Land and Water Conservation Fund, which requires Salt Lake City Public Lands to provide publicly accessible outdoor recreation to the Glendale Community by 2024.
In the plan, the repurposing of the 17-acre site would include features like a picnic area, an event stage, a playground, trails, sports courts, kayak rental, and much more.
READ: Salt Lake City to open Phase 1 of new Glendale Regional Park in April 2024
"Every great city in the world that I can think of is associated with an amazing park," said Dustin Reed, who also supports the plan. "It's where we nurture our hope — we should have people enter a park with hope and leave with inspiration."
While everyone who spoke was in favor of the plan, some did hope there could be a few tweaks made. Those included the addition of more pickleball courts, as well as finding a way to possibly heat the swimming pool.
Soren Simonsen, the executive director of the Jordan River Commission, is hoping they can keep the marina dock at the park for the Jordan River's conservation and clean-up, as well as other uses.
"The current boat launch at the marina that is there now is used for occasional water rescue, so looking at how access is provided for different kinds of watercraft that are used for training by our emergency services is important," said Simonsen.
As for the next steps in the project, construction plan development — funded by $3.2 million in development impact fees — is now underway with Phase 1 construction complete. That will include the opening of new amenities to the public at the park in Spring 2024.
The city council is tentatively scheduled to take action on the ordinance that would adopt the Glendale Regional Park Plan on March 21. This would make it a part of the city's general plan as a specific plan found in the Westside Master Plan.
More information on the Glendale Regional Park Plan can be found on the city's website.
