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Journal-News.com

Indoor water park and lodge targets tourists year-round

Jim Metzger loves the rain.

"A rainy summer day like this is a great example of why you need an indoor water park," said Metzger, the general manager of Great Wolf Lodge, which is being built on 39 acres in Kings Island's back yard.

Great Wolf's eighth venture, a 450,000-square-foot hotel, conference center and indoor water park is set to open in December.

To say Metzger — a Middletown native and veteran of the hospitality industry — is excited is an understatement.

"Our mission is really about creating a multi-layered family experience," he said. "The kids won't be the only ones screaming come opening day."

The lodge is designed to be a one-stop shop for vacationing families. The giant expanse of a hotel has everything from a sprawling video arcade to an Aveda spa.

"We're really going all out to not just take care of the kids, but to make sure the parents get to relax as well," he said.

Great Wolf's approach to the family getaway seams to be working. More than 7 million have stayed at their resorts since 1997 when the first Great Wolf opened in the Wisconsin Dells.

The company's first Ohio venture in Sandusky spawned two competitors shortly after it opened in 2001.

"It's certainly a strong indicator there's a good opportunity here," said Joan Van Offeren, director of the Erie County Visitors and Convention Bureau. "Sandusky is becoming the Ohio destination for indoor water parks."

Area officials hope Great Wolf will make Warren County a year-round destination.

"They're just as busy in the winter as they are in the summer," said Shirley Bonekemper, executive director of the Warren County Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Bonekemper will be one of the featured speakers Aug. 10 when area VIPs get a tour of the site.

"It's going to bring so many exciting things to this area," she said.

Contact this reporter at (513) 696-4525 or cmagan@coxohio.com.