Cody Williamson, president/CEO of CIEDA (Creek Indian Enterprises Development Authority) spoke at the South Baldwin Chamber of Commerce Leadership Luncheon held on Monday, June 6 about what’s been going on at OWA and what’s in the resort’s future.

PHOTO BY JESSICA VAUGHN / GULF COAST MEDIA

PHOTO BY JESSICA VAUGHN / GULF COAST MEDIA

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FOLEY — It's an exciting time for OWA Parks & Resort. With the opening date for Tropic Falls Indoor Water Park rapidly approaching on Monday, June 27, there are a multitude of plans in the works for future projects. Some projects are expected to open before the year's end, while others will come to fruition in the future.

Cody Williamson, president/CEO of CIEDA (Creek Indian Enterprises Development Authority) spoke at the South Baldwin Chamber of Commerce Leadership Luncheon held on Monday, June 6. He took a look at what had happened in the park during 2022 so far, and what is on the horizon.

Tropic Falls Water Park

It was announced earlier this year that Tropic Falls Indoor Water Park is opening on June 27. The outdoor wave pool, delayed due to supply chain issues, is estimated to open in August.

"Not only does the Indoor Water Park have a roof that opens, but it has a wall that opens," said Williamson. "As long as it's a pretty day, you feel like you're outside. If it's rainy or cold, we shut those off, so we can go pretty much the entire year."

Phase one of the project includes the Indoor Water Park itself, which features numerous colorful slides, many that end underground. Phase two includes the Outdoor Water Park, consisting of the wave pool and a surf machine.

Depending on demand for the Tropic Falls Water Park, Williamson said he hopes phase three will be implemented to construct large slides in the outdoor portion of the water park as well.

The water park will add between 300 – 400 employees to OWA's team, said Williamson. Over 160 lifeguards will be needed to operate the entire water park.

New Businesses

Both 2021 and the first half of 2022 saw the arrival of new businesses and attractions at OWA. El Diablo, Rum Island and Valerio's Pizza & Italian make up some new establishments where you can head for food and drinks. On the retail side, creative minds or those looking for unique gifts can check out Paint Party Studios.

Adventure-seekers can head to Gravity Island, situated in Downtown OWA, which offers kids and those young at heart the chance to hit the water as they run, jump and splash their way across the Aqua Play area or take a ride at the Wake Park. Or for those looking for a more virtual adventure, Clash eSports is moving to a new location, and upping its offerings to the next level. Clash eSports has partnered with Megaverse, bringing an all-new VR Experience to the location, plus a unique way to experience gaming.

"We've opened the first virtual reality escape room concept in the area," said Williamson. "Basically, when you walk in, everybody on the team puts on goggles and you go into an escape room, but the escape room can change. We can program a new escape room, and you can go and do another one."

Then there's The Bohemian, a new event center that can seat approximately 250. The venue was created to meet the needs of those looking for small wedding receptions or small events.

On the horizon

A lot of people have been anxiously awaiting the new water park. An equal amount of people have been awaiting news of the RV Park, which was delayed due to the pandemic and Hurricane Sally. Hopefully, Williamson said, those people won't have to wait much longer.

"We've been saying it's going to come for a year now, but everything seems on track and fingers crossed we'll have the RV Park open in 2022," he said.

Not all future plans have been finalized, said Williamson, but are in serious discussion. One such project is construction of a second hotel. The hotel would have 200 rooms and be attached to Tropic Falls Water Park. Williamson said he would love to see the second hotel open for the 2024 season.

Williamson said while plans are not official, dormitories are being discussed to house seasonal workers to assist with staffing issues.

"The problem that we have right now is we don't have enough people that are applying for these jobs," he said. "People come here with J-1 Visas, and the issue is you have to house them. We don't have the housing in the area, so in order to fix that problem we'd just build them. We're actively looking into that because we don't have a choice. I wish we did, we fought J-1's for the longest time because we wanted to hire as many people locally as we could, but we're just getting to the point where there's nobody applying."

Williamson said each dormitory building would hold approximately 300 employees.

"We aren't going anywhere," said Williamson. "All in all, pandemic excluded, we're on track. Every year has been better than the last. It could have been much better, and of course the pandemic affected some businesses worse than others, but we're in for the long haul. We're going to make it happen."

For more information on OWA or to purchase tickets to Tropic Falls Parks or other attractions, head to VisitOWA.com.

For more information on upcoming South Baldwin Chamber events, visit SouthBaldwinChamber.com.