The City of Bowling Green and Wood County have both been committed to developing clean energy options for our community. Solar fields and wind turbines have long been thought to remedy the need, based on our geographic characteristics, however, neither option is free of controversy.

Automotive manufacturers such as Chevy, Ford, Toyota, Nissan, Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge-Ram, and Honda have all expressed interest in offering their customers eco-friendly and low-emission vehicle alternatives and the Thayer family has recently made plans to help make this a local possibility. Today we announce a new green energy option will be coming to our area in the Summer of 2022.

“Thayer Family Wet & Wild Water Wonderland” will break ground on an all-new state-of-the-art facility, to be located at a property adjacent to the current Thayer Ford-Nissan dealership, with construction beginning in August of 2021. 

“It is apparent that the automotive industry is heading in a new direction, with a huge focus being placed on low or no emission vehicles,” says Rachael Thayer-London. “We wanted to give our customers a place to enjoy for generations, as well as allowing an option to charge our highly popular electric vehicle options.”

The new facility will be designed with two traditional waterslides, a lazy river, a splash pad for smaller guests, and three hypersonic super-slides for the most adventurous enthusiasts. All water attractions will be equipped with surface turbines that will produce an average of 1,000 kajilowatts an hour. The energy created from the hundreds of thousands of gallons of recirculated water will power a small sub-station that will be constructed south of the Thayer Ford-Nissan campus. That power station will then direct electricity to one automotive charging station at each of the seven Thayer Family Dealership franchise locations in BG.

“The future is green…Bowling Green,” said Ryan Thayer. “We want to be a place where people not only come to purchase a car because of our reputation of being small-town and family-owned but also provide a helpful service to our community.”

Robyn Thayer, the youngest member of the executive team had this to say about the new endeavor: “Thayer Family Dealerships have always been thought of as the only place to service and purchase a vehicle in Wood County, but now we want our name to be synonymous with FUN.”

County auditor records show that the new $15 million-dollar facility is planned to be both privately and publicly funded, with a tax levy to be proposed for a November 2021 vote. 

“My family has built a business around this community and could not have done it without the confidence of all of our amazing and loyal customers. I am honored to have my family name attached to a project that will continue to put smiles on the faces of guests for years to come,” said Paul Thayer.

Executive General Manager, Robert London, had this to say about the project: “Although we are committed to providing all of our customers with an affordable place to purchase, service, and charge your vehicle, whether it be an EV or standard fuel vehicle, April Fool’s.” 😉