A group of former Disney and Universal Studios executives, designers, architects and engineers have partnered with Thinkwell Design and Production to create a unique destination resort for Las Vegas.
With Wall Street backing of $1.1 billion, the resort is slated to include the largest indoor waterpark in North America, a snow dome, two hotels, a casino, an events arena and many nationally recognised retail and food chains.
The waterpark itself will consume roughly 30 acres, with 250,000 square feet of that indoors, allowing the park to operate 365 days a year. The snow dome (indoor skiing and snow play area) and Swiss-chalet themed hotel encompass another 40 acres. The attractions and entertainment components alone will exceed the size of Disneyland.
According to Steven Dooner, co-founder of the project, and a Disney/Universal theme park veteran, “we spent about a year analysing the needs of Las Vegas from both a tourist and local perspective. We were privy to what Wet ‘N Wild used to draw, and realised that while this would be an attraction for out-of-towners, that the people of the Las Vegas Valley deserved a facility that they could call their own. That is why we chose a location somewhat away from the heart of the Strip, but close to the 215 freeway.”
The design team is focusing on making the project as environmentally friendly as possible. Solar panels will be used wherever possible to generate electricity and micro-turbines will be used to heat and cool the buildings and the water. It will be the first project in Nevada to use fuel cells to generate electricity. The plans also include landscaping that uses as many native plants as possible, in order to reduce the need for water consumption.