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Texas State Aquarium's new splash park will be 3 times bigger than old one

Just in time for summer!

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — A new splash park at Texas State Aquarium will be ready in time for the summer!

The new park will replace the old splash pad area, which has been a popular feature at the Aquarium since 2011. The new space will be 15,000-square-foot and is "designed to mimic the aquatic and terrestrial habitats of the Caribbean and the animals that reside there," a statement from the Aquarium said.  

Aquarium officials said the $2.8M project will be three times the size of the previous splash park and will include all custom water features, such as a multi-level slide play structure which includes 3 large slides, and a 350-gallon water dump feature. 

3NEWS got a sneak peak of the construction for the park on Tuesday. 

Texas State Aquarium Projects and Exhibits Manager Kara Hahn said the new splash pad will have new features that the previous one didn't.

"There is three really large slides with a multi-level play structure that older kids will enjoy while having a small kid play area that we used to have in our old splash park," she said. 

Dominique Moreno has a season pass to the aquarium and said that she is thrilled about the new addition to one of her family's favorite cool off spots.

"Super excited because summer is around the corner and this will be a new experience for us and the kids. When we are bored at home we get to come here and enjoy the beautiful park that's being made," she said.

Hahn told 3NEWS the reason behind replacing the current splash pad was because they simply outgrew it.

"Our existing splash pad was about 12 years old, so it was time for an upgrade. So we decided to take that, extrapolate it," she said.

The park's tall slides and smaller spray features will appeal to all youth, from toddlers to tweens.

The new H-E-B Splash Park will be located on the right side of the Aquarium’s main ramp, behind the ticketing booth.  

Hahn said that the park will also be ADA friendly. They are currently in the concrete pouring stages, but they expect to open the park sometime this June.

There will also be an area for parents with 30 tables with umbrellas for lounging, a Dippin Dots station, snacks, drinks, and a mobile ordering food service from the Pepsi Shoreline Grill, the Aquarium’s main restaurant. 

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