Glass-bottomed boats float every day on Spring Lake in front of the Texas River Systems Institute, located in the renovated Aquarena Springs Hotel. Once the most popular theme park in the state, the Aquarena Center now emphasizes education, and is another step closer to changing its evolving identity.

Once the oldest amusement park west of the Mississippi, Aquarena Springs entertained with such attractions as swimming pigs, mermaids and underwater theater shows. Students and residents were even married at the park, some in underwater ceremonies that guests could watch from a submerged theater, the "aqua-arena" that gave Aquarena Springs its name.

The park operated from 1946 until it was bought by Texas State in 1994 and renamed the Aquarena Center. The university decided to change the emphasis of the park from entertainment to education, a costly decision that required substantial changes to the 90-acre property.

The Aquarena Center and the Texas Rivers Institute at Texas State University-San Marcos recently received $300,000 towards drawing plans to transform the previous amusement park into a beacon of environmental awareness.

The second-largest springs in Texas cab be seen through the floor of a glass-bottom boat These springs feed the San Marcos River and are home to several endangered species, including the Texas Blind Salamander. The River Systems Institute is one of the best places in the world to study aquatic ecosystems and species.

Aquarena Center secures funding for major renovation plans



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