More than two years after opening its doors, the Montgomery Whitewater Park continues to demand increasing funds from local leaders to keep the 120-acre whitewater adventure park afloat, with the Montgomery County Commission approving up to $1 million in federal COVID-19 relief funds for the park's continued existence.
Montgomery County Commissioner Doug Singleton, one of the park's most prominent champions, along with Montgomery Mayor Steven Reed and City Council president C.C. Calhoun, attributed the price increase to heightened construction costs, general inflation, and labor shortages resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Despite the financial woes, which included a now-settled lawsuit from a minority subcontractor over alleged racism, the park's advocates plowed forward, having secured funds from various sources. The final price tag came out to be roughly $90 million, with some estimates placing the park's final price tag as high as $110 million. This came after the initial cost estimate of $35 million.
The commission met on Tuesday to vote on appropriating an additional amount of up to $1 million from the federal COVID-19 relief funds through the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).
Before the body voted on the measure, District 1 Commissioner Daniel Harris, Jr. stated that he had requested audited financial statements but had yet to receive them.
"Everybody, particularly this County Commission, want to see that project succeed," Harris said. "I mean, we've spent too much money already for it not to succeed. However, they continue to operate at a significant, significant deficit."
"Do you have any idea when we may get those [audited financial statements] because I think it's important to have those so that we can be good stewards, since we have that fiduciary responsibility in terms of, you know, what the taxpayers get from the money we spend," he added.
"I've seen the financials," Singleton replied. "We do not have audited financials. Kindell, correct me if I'm wrong, but they're in the process of getting audited financials."
The Kindell Singleton referenced is both the county administrator and the chairman of the Montgomery County Community Cooperative District (MCCCD), which owns and operates the park.
The MCCCD is considered a "Capital Improvement Cooperative District" and is therefore exempt from all state, county and municipal taxes.
"We understood that we had an agreement with the city, and they have helped us and worked with us on operating costs, and we've got to continue to do operating costs until the park gets self-sufficient," Singleton continued.
Singleton also stated the park's revenue has grown more than 50% over the last year, adding, "[W] e've set records out there every weekend for the past three weekends."
He continued in his seemingly exculpatory diatribe, justifying his vigor in pushing the park over the years, claiming the park's purpose was never to make money, but to bring investment and development to the area.
"[I] t's probably not ever going to be something that you would do for profit," Singleton said. "Montgomery Zoo, it's not for profit. Shakespeare [Festival], [Montgomery] Museum [of Fine Arts], a lot of Dixie Youth baseball and softball teams out there play at parks that are not making money."
SEE: Montgomery Whitewater bleeds money while failing to deliver on promises of economic boom
The vote was taken via the electronic tablets used by each commissioner, making an exact vote difficult. However, Singleton announced the motion carried after a second from Commissioner Justin Castanza.
The park first opened its doors on July 8, 2023, following years of negotiations and a combination of funding from a bond, funded by the county's 2% rental tax, as well as money from the State, County, City and the Poarch Band of Creek Indians.
The project's funding did not come without headaches, as the cost continued to rise throughout the building process, necessitating repeated petitions for additional financing.
Singleton repeatedly boasted of the 120-acre park as a benefit to the City, County and State, citing economic impact, education opportunities and much more.
The funding remains a source of contention to this day. Recently, a minor dust-up arose between the city council and the county commission. Singleton has accused the city of not equally bearing the park's financial burden. Meanwhile, city councilmembers have balked at the requested funding without a perceived end in sight.
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