Construction has started on a 7.5-acre artificial lagoon that will serve as the main amenity at a residential development in Wesley Chapel, a landlocked suburb of Tampa.
With an average depth of eight feet, the artificial lagoon will serve as the recreational centerpiece of 2,000-home development in Wesley Chapel planned by Tampa-based Metro Development Group.
Metro Development and the builder of the artificial lagoon, Crystal Lagoons U.S. Corp., held a ground-breaking ceremony on Feb. 2 for the project.
Greg Singleton, president of Metro Development, expects his company’s investment in the artificial lagoon could be as much as $10 million. The lagoon project will include construction of a swim-up bar and restaurant, a play area with a slide, a facility for renting canoes and kayaks, a grotto and waterfall, and an entertainment center equipped with a large-screen television.
Uri Man, chief executive officer of Crystal Lagoons U.S. Corp., told the Tampa Bay Times that construction of the lagoon at Wesley Chapel could be finished by September.
Crystal Lagoons will fill the 15 million-gallon lagoon with water purchased from Pasco County. The fill-up is expected to take at least 45 days. The lagoon will be equipped with 400 sensors measuring the quality of the water. [Tampa Bay Times] – Mike Seemuth