Key Lime Cove to Close Wednesday; Great Wolf to Take Over Facility, Expand

GURNEE, IL -- Key Lime Cove in Gurnee is expected to officially close its doors on Wednesday as Great Wolf Lodge prepares to take over and expand upon the property in a move that village officials believe will help bolster the local economy.

Key Lime Cove opened its tropics-themed resort and waterpark in 2008 near Grand Avenue and I-94 in Gurnee. The 30-acre property currently has 414 rooms, a 65,000 square foot tropical-themed indoor waterpark, shops and vendors, restaurants and a spa. The resort will end its nine years in the village after the last visitor checks out on Wednesday, the Daily Herald reports.

Great Wolf Lodge, which touts itself as the largest family of indoor water parks with hotels, plans to start work soon in renovating the property with hopes of reopening its facility in Gurnee by spring break next year.

The plans for the Great Wolf Lodge redevelopment includes adding 20,000 square feet of new indoor waterpark space, outdoor waterpark amenities, increased shopping options, and the re-theming of the resort to a Northwoods theme, according to the village of Gurnee.

“The village of Gurnee is excited to welcome Great Wolf Lodge in to our community,” said Mayor Kristina Kovarik. “The halo effect from this project will benefit the entire region.”

• Great Wolf Lodge Aims to Take Over, Renovate Key Lime Cove in Gurnee
  

A revenue-sharing agreement approved by the Gurnee Village Board in February with Great Wolf Lodge will allow Great Wolf and the village to collect $550,000 per year in hotel/motel taxes. Once both have hit that mark, Great Wolf will collect 100 percent of that tax revenue, village officials said. The agreement will run through 2029 and allows the resort to collect up to $18 million.

This agreement would take the place of the cost-sharing agreement the village currently has with Key Lime Cove.

Under that agreement, the village was only bringing in, on average, about $400,000 per year from Key Lime Cove since the water park and resort opened in 2008, according to the Chicago Tribune.

Kovarik told the Daily Herald she is grateful Key Lime Cove opened in Gurnee and added that she did not think Great Wolf would have selected the village if the waterpark and resort facility was not already there.

"Key Lime Cove has been a wonderful, wonderful addition to the village and a great community partner on so many things in town," Kovarik said. "And they've done (well) but Great Wolf is the gold standard for water parks and resorts, and I think they are just going to pick it up quite a few notches."

Great Wolf Lodge runs waterpark resorts in Wisconsin Dell, Wis., as well as in Ohio, California, Texas and other states.

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