County grants developer a reprieve on Ontario waterpark contract
A Rancho Cucamonga developer has until March 31 to meet the terms of its contract with the county for a $20 million waterpark at Cucamonga-Guasti Regional Park in Ontario, otherwise the contract will be terminated.
The San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday granted Liquid Management Group, Inc. the reprieve after the company's vice president, Mark Mitzenmacher, assured the board LMG would be able to clear its debt and satisy the terms of its contract.
"We've been assured in writing the project will be funded," Mitzenmacher told the board Tuesday.
Supervisor Josie Gonzales was adamant that the county cancel the contract if LMG doesn't make the March 31 deadline so no other fees are incurred.
"I'm sticking my neck out for you because I know it is a good project," Gonzales told Mitzenmacher.
If all goes according to plan, the Caribbean Island-themed waterpark will be open by May 2010. It will feature a 500,000-gallon wave pool, a water slide tower, an activity pool and a raft ride.
The park will also feature a five-acre outdoor, three-tiered amphitheater with 700 stadium-style seats and lawn seating. It will be open year-round.
The Board of Supervisors entered into a a 25-year lease agreement with LMG on May 13, 2008. LMG entered into its funding agreement with World Equity Partners soon therafter, and about four months later the financial market collapsed, Mitzenmacher said.
"We hit the perfect storm of financial meltdown. September (2008) comes and everything stopped, across the globe, so it put us into a delay," Mitzenmacher said.
Since then, the developer has failed to pay the county a substantial portion of park usage and monthly license fees as negotiated in its contract. It has failed to timely submit reports on gross income and has failed to submit proof of insurance.
As a result, the county was forced to serve LMG with notices of default.
In mid-January, World Equity Partners informed LMG things were stabilizing and funding for the project was loosening up. Now, the developer is in the process of closing the deal, Mitzenmacher said.
If the waterpark project is salvaged, the county expects to receive about $8.6 million in revenue from it over the term of LMG's 25-year lease agreement.
The project will bring hundreds of construction jobs to the region, and the waterpark is expected to employee about 400 people once it opens, Mitzenmacher said.
LMG will begin pulling permits immediately after settling its contract obligations with the county.
"The day the money hits the account we're moving forward," said Mitzenmacher. "Because we want to get this park built and open."
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