America’s only new waterpark to open in 2020 has opened to the public in Sevierville, Tennessee. Soaky Mountain Waterpark is a 50-acre outdoor waterpark designed and built by designer and builder of water parks and water ride attractions Aquatic Development Group (ADG).
The $90 million waterpark features over a dozen water attractions including two iconic WaveTek attractions – a 35,000 square foot wave pool capable of generating waves up to 6 feet high and ADG’s Tidal River spanning over 24,000 square feet with 3’ WaveTek “Tidal Wave” roller wave that travel the entire length of the ride.
In addition to the iconic wave attractions, ADG designed several other cutting-edge attractions into their concept, including a dual-Wibit inflatable water obstacle course, a flat-water adult cabana pool, a double FlowRider surf ride, and several ProSlide water slides – including two of the world’s first: A water coaster and wave hybrid slide as well as a miniature kid-sized wave slide.
The aesthetic of the buildings, furniture, landscaping, theming and signage is referred to as ‘Mountain-Modern’, designed to complement a water park situated only miles from the Smoky Mountains.
From the entry point to the furthest part of the waterpark, there was a 100 ft of elevation and the site was composed primarily of shale rock. ADG’s construction team had to blast and move 750,000 yards of earth before work on the water park could even begin. A key objective in ADG’s design was to preserve and showcase the unique elevation grade as much as possible, creating a unique “modern-mountain” landscape which allowed them to creatively design the amenities and attractions into the elevation versus just flattening it.
The project was built during the wettest year of Sevierville’s history, and through a worldwide pandemic. “ADG got us open a season earlier than expected, met our budget, and gave us the direction we needed to create this incredible park,” said Tim Gantz, Soaky Mountain.