The grand opening of Tonganoxie Water Park is set for Saturday, but swimmers will have to wait at least another week before diving into the water.

Tonganoxie ? Since last winter – when two 25-foot-high water slides went up at the new Tonganoxie Water Park – local residents have been wondering exactly when the new pool would open.

And now they have their answer.

A grand opening for the new pool will be Saturday, in conjunction with Tonganoxie Days. But swimmers, it seems, will have to wait at least one week longer before actually sliding down the slides and diving off the pool’s two 1-meter diving boards.

City Administrator Mike Yanez said he would like to see the pool open officially for operation the following Saturday, June 21, calling that date “a realistic option.”

A contract deadline for the project with general contractor Prosser Wilbert Construction Inc. of Lenexa is July 1.

Landscaping, interior work on the pool’s bathhouse and work on the fence remain.

The new water park replaces Chief Tonganoxie Swimming Pool, which attracted swimmers for more than 80 years but closed last August in part because of a failing filtration system.

It boasts dramatically improved water treatment, six 25-meter lap lanes, a “sprayground” complete with water cannons and rotating dump buckets, and lots of shaded areas for relief from the sun.

“There will be a lot of color, a lot of vegetation, too,” Yanez said. “Instead of a big concrete slab and water, it’s going to feel like a park.”

The pool’s railings and a zero-depth, beach-like entry are ADA accessible and will accommodate the elderly and disabled.

“I think the best feature is it’s going to meet the needs of all age groups,” Yanez said.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony and walk-through tours are set for 1 p.m. Saturday, followed by a performance by Annie’s Country Jubilee Band at 2 p.m.

Tonganoxie voters approved a 0.75 percent sales tax increase for the $2.7 million capital improvement project by a 2-to-1 margin in April 2007.