Hoffman hotel-water park-conference center work could start in fall
Construction on the latest piece of the Hoffman Estates entertainment district could start as early as next month if the village approves the long-planned indoor water park, hotel and conference center.
The $85-million SplasH20 facility is slated to come before the board for a vote Aug. 18. The project, including 240 hotel rooms and a conference center, would stand on 22 acres in Prairie Stone Business Park, next to the planned Prairie Creek Music Theater near Beverly Road and the Jane Addams Memorial Tollway.
Amenities are to include a wave pool, body slides and a four-person inner tube ride.
"We have a phenomenal location with great visibility off (I-90)," said Joseph Buralli of Water Park H20tels Prairie Stone LLC.
The best-case scenario has the 65,000-square-foot water park opening between Thanksgiving and Christmas 2009, but Buralli said that, realistically, he's preparing for spring 2010.
The project has evolved since Buralli pitched it to the village in 2005, including a name change. It was originally known as Sun Island Resort.
"We ran into a problem with a Florida hotel over the name," he said.
Plans have also been scaled down and redesigned from the original 15-story, 400-room proposal. The project now calls for six stories with fewer rooms that face east and west rather than north and south. That was done to shield guests from noise from Prairie Creek. The 8,900-seat outdoor amphitheater could open next summer on a neighboring 10 acres.
Depending on the water park and hotel's success in drawing guests, Buralli said his group might invest about $35 million more to add another 240 hotel rooms and expand the park to 100,000 square feet. There's no timetable for that, he said.
Changes to entertainment districts aren't anything new, as Rosemont officials recently said they're tweaking their plans, including closing four screens at the Muvico movie theater in favor of adding a bowling alley.
In Hoffman Estates, village officials hope the water park meshes with the other components of its entertainment district, which includes the Sears Centre arena and retailers like a Sports Authority that plans to open in September.
"Those decisions and planning are always in a constant state of flux," said Mayor William McLeod.
Buralli said market studies show the Chicago area can support eight water parks, including ones already in Arlington Heights and Elk Grove Village.
Buralli said he's targeting families who enjoy water parks and don't want to spend gas money to drive to farther away locales like the Wisconsin Dells. He also said business would thrive in the colder months, as the park is indoors.
Buralli's group first brought the proposal for the water park to Harvard, Ill. about six years ago, but that plan never progressed.
Hoffman Estates already has eight hotels and more than 1,200 hotel rooms. Village tourism and business coordinator Linda Scheck said she's happy to have one more hotel to work with. The extra hotel rooms could come in handy if, say, Chicago wins its bid for the 2016 Olympics.
"I'm so excited about it," Scheck said. "I can't wait until (SplasH20) gets here."