MACON, Ga. — There's now one less option to cool down this summer in Bibb County.
According to an overnight Facebook post from former park operators, Sandy Beach Water Park is now permanently closed. The park closed early last year because two of the main attractions, like the wave pool, weren't working properly.
Matt Satterly, the president of the company that used to run the park, says the main issue is repair costs to fix those attractions.
"We went very often and we planned on going this summer, too," said Andria Sands.
Sands and her family were water park regulars from the beginning. They were hopeful until the very end.
"I know they had went down on the ticket prices a little bit, and I knew they went under new management, so I thought that was something that was going to keep them open. Guess not," she said.
This year, the family may have to find a new place to splash around. Satterly with StandGuard Aquatics says maintenance issues and costs are to blame.
"All of the mechanical rooms are not covered and not protected. The wave machine is down in an area that gets flooded by the creek that runs by there," Satterly explained.
He estimates the repair costs are well into six figures.
"I'm sure in this environment, there's probably not the stomach for that," Satterly said.
County Spokesman Chris Floore says the company asked Macon-Bibb to make the repairs during the offseason. He says when the county asked StandGuard for a more detailed cost breakdown, they never heard back. February 3, the county sent them a letter terminating their agreement. Floore says the company didn't respond to that either.
Satterly says he thinks they did respond, but he wasn't sure. He thinks the closure happened because the park wasn't profitable enough for the county.
"Gave it a shot and ran it for a few years, but revenue-wise, I think it's probably in their best interest," he said.
According to Macon-Bibb County's agreement with StandGuard, the county would get a cut of the revenue if the park made $275,000. Satterly says they never made more than $200,000.
Floore says now that the water park is permanently closed, the county will need to go back to the drawing board to figure out what's next. There's no word on water park operations this summer.