Lawsuit seeks to block installation of Parrot Island Waterpark waterslides

The purchase and planned installation of five Parrot Island Waterpark waterslides has taken more twists and turns than, well, a water park waterslide. The latest chapter comes via a lawsuit filed Tuesday (Feb. 3) seeking to halt work on slide installation.

A lawsuit filed by Fort Smith attorney Joey McCutchen in the Sebastian County Circuit Court alleges that the city of Fort Smith violated state and city codes when the Fort Smith Board of Directors recently approved a $2.68 million plan to install the waterslides.

The water park was opened in 2015 at Ben Geren Regional Park, which is owned by Sebastian County. Its initial construction cost was shared jointly by the county and the city.

The Fort Smith board initially voted to spend $2.1 million on the slides and installation, with Sebastian County expected to also spend $2.1 million. The Sebastian County Quorum Court voted against buying the slides. The Fort Smith board voted in September 2024 to pick up the other $2.1 million and continue with purchase and installation of the slides.

It was learned in October 2025 that the cost to install the five slides would push beyond the $4.2 million approved for the project. The board then voted Jan. 20 on a $2.689 million plan to finish the project, with Fort Smith-based Royal Ridge Construction awarded the work outside of the competitive bidding process.

“The complaint asserts that delay and budget overruns do not meet that legal standard and that the waiver ordinance was adopted without any emergency, public safety concern, or factual findings demonstrating that competitive bidding was not feasible,” McCutchen said in a statement.

The city, in a statement sent to Talk Business & Politics, said the need to install the slides before the 2026 summer season was the reason for an expedited process outside of competitive bidding.

“We have not yet been served with the lawsuit; however, our initial contention is that exigent circumstances exist due to the project timeline and the need to have the slides operational, or at least partially operational, for the 2026 season,” noted the city statement.

The city also said slide installation work has not yet begun.

In his eight-page complaint, McCutchen also alleges that because Royal Ridge had to backtrack on a previous contract award for sewer system work, the city should have conducted more due diligence.

“The city’s decision to waive competitive bidding and negotiate directly with Royal Ridge occurred with full knowledge of Royal Ridge’s prior bid withdrawal and pricing error on a major city project,” the complaint states. “This history heightened the necessity for strict adherence to competitive bidding requirements and underscores the absence of any legitimate ‘exceptional situation’ justifying a waiver of those requirements in this case.”

The complaint seeks to halt the city from proceeding with using Royal Ridge to install the waterslides and do other work related to the installation.

Link here for a PDF of the filed complaint.