County Commissioners authorize lawsuit to wipeout NLand Surf Park
NLand surf park (Austin Park LLC) is being sued by Travis County in a suit authorized by the Travis County commissioners but not before Nland could file a lawsuit in federal court in U. S. District Court for the Western District of Texas on July 13th, 2016. This is yet a another delay for the long awaited surf park in wave starved Texas. Travis County insist Nland should be regulated as a swimming pool despite being a 13 acre lake with a natural sandy bottom. This has continually been a issue with the county throughout the permitting process where the county has required Nland to permit the lake as a pool. Nland argues the lake is too big to be regulated as a pool and if it were required to install pumps to circulate the water as regulated every six hours the pumps would actually make the lake more dangerous and endanger lives.
The wave is forecast to be one of a kind. Nland predicts it will produces a wave a minute ranging in size from four to six feet for beginners to experts, for practice and training to recreational surfing. There is a prototype of Nland's wave in Spain and a smaller version turning out waves in Great Britain now but this park will be the first of it's kind in the United States. A very welcome addition to wave starved Texans used to surfing behind oil barges and small Gulf of Mexico waves.
There are several other wake board pools in Travis County which are not required to be permitted as pools. Nland argues this violates it constitutional rights to equal protection under the law. Travis County argues the surf park is a threat to public safety in their county court lawsuit.
The issue in both cases is whether Nland's manmade lake supplied by rain water is a swimming pool and should be regulated as such. Nland argue's its' unique and too big to be simply regulated as a pool. Travis County has asked the judge to halt the parks opening which has led an unprecedented outpouring of support in favor of Nland. Nland has prepared an engineering memorandum for the county.
Nland sent out a mass email and press release on all forms of social media to supporters stating the suit was completely unexpected and unwarranted. Nland was denied a request for an exemption to the pool requirements in 2014 ordering Nland to halt construction which was ignored. The park had an orientation with over a 150 new employees the day the news of the suit came to light. The fact that Nland has filed suit in federal court shows it is very serious about opening the surf park. There are many other companies such as the Kelly Slater Wave Company that are watching what happens here. These cases may shape the future of wave parks in the United States.
Nland claims the park will be safe. The county appears to be playing politics with the employees jobs.
