Wilderness Resorts and Waterparks officials today announced that Dave Andrews has been name general manager for their new 50-acre Soaky Mountain Waterpark in Sevierville, Tenn., opening summer 2020. Andrews will be responsible for overseeing the day-to-day operations and staff for the waterpark.
Andrews was most recently serving as the general manager for SoundWaves at Gaylord Opryland Resort in Nashville, TN. He also served as vice president and general manager for Wet ‘N’ Wild in Palm Spring, CA and director of operations and operations manager for Ocean Breeze Waterpark in Virginia Beach, VA. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from Hampden-Sydney College in Hampden-Sydney, VA and an MBA from Liberty University in Lynchburg, VA.
According to Joe Eck, COO of Wilderness Resorts and Waterparks, “We are thrilled to have someone like David with an extensive waterpark background joining our team and helping us to open our new waterpark. Soaky Mountain Waterpark is going to be an amazing destination for families with children of all ages to enjoy. It will feature some of the most popular, thrilling and unique water attractions available, and David is perfect individual to help us open it.”
Soaky Mountain Waterpark is a $90 million project that is expected to add nearly 500 full- and part-time jobs to the Sevierville area. It is anticipated to draw over 400,000 visitors annually and generate approximately $400,000 annually in Tourism Development Zone Tax.
It will feature a massive, 35,000 square foot wave pool capable of generating waves up to 6 feet high; a winding wave river spanning an area of 24,000 square feet; and a heavily-themed and exciting kids’ play-and-spray feature with multiple slides for both the tame and the daring. There will also be a kid-friendly activity pool with smaller versions of the other towering slides found throughout the park; an adventure pool with a WIBIT water obstacle course; a flat-water cabana pool for relaxing poolside; a double FlowRider for the surfer in all of us; and four large slide complexes that will provide thrills and excitement all day long.
Slides will include a one-of-a-kind water coaster; a family ride tower with two five-person raft rides; a tubing tower with five flumes all featuring unique and thrilling one or two-person tubing experiences; two high-intensity body slides; and a four-lane, head-first mat racing challenge to satisfy everyone’s racing desires.
Wilderness Resorts and Waterparks currently also owns and operates Wilderness at the Smokies in Sevierville, and Wilderness Resort, Glacier Canyon Lodge, and Wilderness on the Lake, Wild Rock Golf Course, Sundara Spa and Glacier Canyon Conference Center in Wisconsin Dells.
For ongoing project updates visit: SoakyMountainWaterpark.com.
