Schlitterbahn Riverpark and Resort in Corpus Christi sold in a bankruptcy auction May 1 to IBC bank, the lien holder and only bidder on the property. It will remain open ‘for years to come,’ according to Schlitterbahn, which will continue to operate the park under a licensing and management agreement. Courtesy photo
A bank now owns the Schlitterbahn Riverpark and Resort in Corpus Christi, which will remain open under a management agreement with the company that was forced to sell the property in the first place. Unable to make payments on a $16 million loan from IBC bank, Schlitterbahn declared Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The lender was the only bidder at the auction May 1 on the Nueces County Courthouse steps.The bank paid $20 million.
“We have exciting news!” reads a media release from Schlitterbahn’s company spokesperson, Winter Prosapio. “Corpus Christi will continue to have a Schlitterbahn park. The park will continue operating as a licensed Schlitterbahn Riverpark and Resort.”
Schlitterbahn Corpus Christi will open for the 2018 season Saturday, May 26, on Memorial Day weekend, a delay from the originally announced date of April 28. According to the media release, the Veranda Restaurant will continue to operate, and all existing reservations and group events and pricing will be honored. The resort will be booking for future dates without interruption.
The Corpus Christi water park will be marketed and operated under new owner Diamond Beach Holdings LLC, an affiliate company of the International Bank of Commerce.
Minus Corpus Christi, Schlitterbahn now owns four parks: the original New Braunfels property as well as water parks in Galveston, South Padre Island, and Kansas City, Kansas.
BESET FROM THE BEGINNING
The local water park has been beset with problems since its inception. After breaking ground in 2013, financial problems and expanding plans delayed opening by two years. At one point, construction halted when the company stopped paying contractors. The park finally opened in 2016 with 17 rides.
The company was forced into bankruptcy a year later when it could not make payments on a $28 million loan from IBC, the second bankruptcy associated with water park owners Jeff and Greg Henry. The brothers formed Upper Padre Island Partners with Padre Island developer Paul Schexnailder and took out an $18 million loan from Axys Capital Credit. The plan was to create a “riverwalk,” similar to the one in San Antonio, around the water park.
Axys Capital Credit purchased the property for $9 million at a bankruptcy auction in December.
New owners will have to take on all fiduciary responsibilities of the park, including more than $700,000 owed to the city in past-due utility payments. Licensing and operation will remain with Schlitterbahn.
