Splash Station Water Park Won't Open In 2022

JOLIET, IL — The Joliet Park District kept the Splash Station Water Park along Route 6 closed in 2019, 2020, 2021, and it will remain closed for the summer of 2022, park district director Brad Staab informed Joliet Patch this week.

Staab said there was not a specific issue or reason for the decision, other than the fact "that it's been closed since 2018."

In years past, Splash Station averaged 50,000 to 55,000 customers. It usually stayed open about 70 days in the summer, Staab said.

In 2019, the Joliet Park District made the decision to close the Splash Station water park for the summer because of a significant financial deficit facing the district. During the past two years, it stayed closed as park district officials cited the worldwide global pandemic.

In recent years, the Joliet Park District has leased out space within its large parking lot at Splash Station to trucking companies needing places to park their semitrailers.

All in all, the Joliet Park District is extremely busy at the moment, Staab said, as the Taste of Joliet returns on June 24-26, after not taking place in 2020 and 2021 because of the coronavirus.

Staab said that the Joliet Park District's three 18-hole golf courses, along with softball leagues and registration for summer programs for kids, are drawing a lot of interest.