By Colin Atkinson

To bring the Audubon zoo’s ‘Cool Zoo’ to life, WhiteWater West Industries installed a multi-level interactive play structure as part of the new splash park attraction with a life-like alligator as its central theme. Photo courtesy WhiteWater West Industries

WhiteWater West Industries, a waterpark and aquatic attraction design/build firm in Richmond, B.C., installed its first North American zoo water play structure as part of the new splash park attraction at the Audubon Zoo in New Orleans, La., which opened earlier this year.

This was not a typical installation, however, as WhiteWater was asked to bring the water park attraction, appropriately named ‘Cool Zoo,’ to life, as park officials were looking to add a refreshing new element to the popular zoo. In doing so, WhiteWater designed a custom multi-level interactive play structure with a life-like alligator as its central theme. This was no ordinary alligator, however; as it had to be an accurate reproduction of ‘Spot,’ the Audubon Zoo’s resident albino alligator, which meant incorporating his rare albino colouring.

As WhiteWater’s water play centres are modularly constructed, they can be built anywhere. For instance, the water play structure used for this project contains 15 standpipes, which are joined together by horizontal pipes, some of which carry water to feed the various features, including the tipping bucket and fibreglass reinforced plastic (FRP) horizontal platforms and stairs. Modular assembly was extremely beneficial for this project, as it allowed various stages of design, fabrication and construction to be carried out in Richmond and Kelowna, B.C., as well as in New Orleans.

Read the full article: Creating a Rare Water Play Structure