Cedar Point getting new water line

SANDUSKY — An agreement between those representing Cedar Point and Sandusky's government calls for the installation of a new water line to benefit amusement park users along with city residents. During a recent public meeting, executives at Six Flags — Cedar Point's parent company — and city officials agreed to build a new $3 million water line. Crews will construct this new piece of infrastructure along the Cedar Point Causeway's eastern edge, underneath its road base. It'll go beside an existing line, below the causeway's middle section — which, at times, caused problems for traffic when utility-related failures arose. This would include several water line breaks, interrupting service and, on some days, forcing Cedar Point to close. "If there is an issue in the future, it would only impact one lane (of travel) and not two or more," said city manager John Orzech, noting how "The existing (line will) get capped at both ends but remains in place." This line serves not only amusement park employees and guests but residents who live along the Cedar Point Chaussee. Orzech believes work could start as soon as this week. Project tie-in This water line project ties into transformative plans to greatly improve the Cedar Point Causeway and Cedar Point Drive. From the mainland, Cedar Point Drive leads into the causeway, Cedar Point's primary entry/exitway since debuting in 1957. The water line first arrived on scene in the late 1950s. Authorized in 2021, tax money generated by Cedar Point — $100 million over a two-decade period — calls for, in part, creating and/or improving many forthcoming facilities and infrastructure initiatives throughout Sandusky. This would include building a new recreation center, establishing a water taxi system and, most notably, enhancing the causeway. Work involves rebuilding, renovating and resurfacing the road while also increasing its overall size. Officials envision the causeway expanding to five total vehicular lanes, up from four. Additionally, officials want to build a bike/non-vehicular traffic lane for pedestrians along the causeway. "The city eagerly supported this historic and mutually beneficial partnership with Six Flags, one of the city's largest employers," according to a city statement. "Likewise, Six Flags recognizes the critical importance of city services and infrastructure to the world-famous Cedar Point amusement park." Making sense of the dollars and cents So how will all of this be funded? As part of a mutually agreed-upon deal, "The city had established an increase in admissions tax throughout the city and had established a parking tax throughout the city," according to a city memo. "The city of Sandusky agreed to have a portion of the increase in taxes dedicated back to Six Flags of $1.25 million annually for 22 years to support the renovation of the Cedar Point Causeway and multi-use (Sandusky Bay) pathway along the causeway to Cedar Point," the memo read, noting this amount, over its life, should total $27.5 million. Increases in these two taxes largely impact tourists: • The parking tax, enacted in 2022, applies to cars parking at Cedar Point. It's an 8% fee, tacked onto ticket sales, on drivers entering Cedar Point. This will pay for the causeway upgrades. • On a related note, to support the other economic development initiatives, city officials raised the admissions tax from 4% to 8%. The admissions tax gets more than 99% of its funding from ticket sales generated by Cedar Point. This water line project represents a new post-deal agreement. So, when factoring in the water line project, it bumps Six Flags' overall investment in Sandusky to north of $30 million. And, just like the other improvements, taxes largely paid for by tourists and Cedar Point users will cover this cost, benefiting many local residents. While the water line project should end later in 2026, the causeway project should take several years. As work happens, however, cars can still traverse the causeway but should expect delays with lane closures and ongoing work.