Wild Rivers Appeals Ruling

Owners of the Wild Rivers water park on Tuesday appealed a judge’s decision giving its landlord the green light to make good on his threats to demolish the Irvine attraction.

Attorneys for the water park are asking the 4th District Court of Appeal to prevent Los Angeles businessman Harry Shuster from obtaining demolition permits and moving to take down the $8-million facility when his master lease on the underlying property expires Feb. 28.

“Wild Rivers will be irreparably harmed if this goes forward,” attorney Kathleen McDowell said. “We think a better course of action is to preserve the status quo while we sort this thing out. Let’s look before we leap.”

Last week, Orange County Superior Court Judge Michael Brenner refused to grant an injunction that would have prevented Shuster from proceeding with plans to tear down the water park as part of a long-running feud with the Irvine Co.

The water park and adjacent Irvine Meadows Amphitheatre are tenants on a 300-acre parcel near the El Toro Y that Shuster controls through a 29-year master lease with the Irvine Co. Shuster has threatened to raze both facilities when his master lease expires unless the Irvine Co. compensates him for leaving two profitable tenants on the property.