Depending on the weather, Okotoks children may have their first chance to splash in the Town’s outdoor water park this Friday.

The park will officially open at the Okotoks Recreation Centre with a ceremony, but will only be operational if the weather cooperates.

Okotoks resident Julie Kotowich said she is looking forward to warm weather so she can take her children out for a day at the new park.

“If it ever gets nice we’ll use it,” she said during last week’s blast of wintery weather.

Kotowich said it will provide an alternative to the pool, the Sheep River or the High River spray park as a place to keep cool outside this summer.

The Town has scheduled a grand opening ceremony for the spray park, but will hold it indoors if it rains on Friday.

“The grand opening is going to go ahead no matter what because we have some dignitaries coming for it,” said Susan Laurin, community services manager for the Town.

The first phase of the water park contains water cannons, sprayers and a bucket that fills and then dumps to the ground below.

The estimated cost of phase one is $750,000. Of this total, the provincial and federal governments contributed $250,000 each and the Town covered an additional $250,000.

The Town has proposed an expansion of the facility at some point in the future.

There were some concerns from residents regarding the amount of water being used for the park. However, Laurin said the water used in the park will be recycled.

“We have a recirculation system, it’s very similar to the swimming pool,” she said. “Once it’s filled there’s a big holding tank buried under ground and that water continues to circulate.”

Laurin said the park is designed so water drains to the centre and it is then filtered and disinfected before being put back into the holding tank.

She said the 6,000 U.S. gallon tank will be filled up each spring.

She didn’t know what rate of evaporation is anticipated, but said it will depend on how many children use it and the weather.

Laurin said the tank was built to accommodate a future expansion so they don’t expect to have to top up the tank through the course of the summer.

“We’re filling the tank now while water is plentiful at this time of year,” she said. “We’ll just recycle and reuse the same water all summer.”

The park will be open from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. seven days per week, weather permitting. She said the park will typically be open on days when the temperature is above 20 C.

There will not be an admission charge for the park.

Okotoks resident Jacqueline Boisvert said she would support an admission fee. She said a modest cost would be worth it and help maintain the facility.

“A buck or two for four hours is fine,” she said.

In the end, Boisvert said it was worth it for the Town to build the spray park.

“I think there’s enough young people in town that it’ll get used to the max when it’s open,” she said.

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