Fort Lauderdale judge halts $110M water park

Schlitterbahn’s $110 million water park planned for Fort Lauderdale continues to flutter, with a federal judge invalidating the city’s agreement with the developer yesterday, according to the Sun Sentinel.

The Judge ruled the contract to be “invalid, null and void,” as the city didn’t follow its own rules in failing to seek competitive bids when it was granted the lease of the city-owned property.

Another company -- Premier Parks LLC, owner of the Riviera Beach-based Rapids Water Park -- filed suit against the city in October 2015 because it stood to lose millions of dollars as a result of the Schlitterbahn deal and wanted a chance to make its own offer.

“Premier is confident that it can present a proposal that will be very exciting for the community and for the city,” said Gary Rosen, an attorney representing the company.

Jeff Henry, the owner of Schlitterbahn, once said it’d be “the biggest and baddest” water park” they’ve ever built.

Planned to be constructed on 64 acres by Fort Lauderdale’s Executive Airport, the project has been in the pipeline since 2010 and has been held up for a variety of reasons.

So delays shall continue as the city can either file an appeal or seek bids for a new deal.