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Pierce Robinson, like many young children, is fascinated with construction equipment and garbage trucks. That love served as his father’s inspiration for creating Dig World, an amusement park in Katy, designed to safely provide hands-on experience operating heavy construction equipment.
“Pierce is nonverbal and in a wheelchair, and when he wheels to the front gate, he giggles and smiles,” co-founder Jacob Robinson says. “He is so happy there. He laughs and claps and really enjoys getting on the machines with either me or my dad.”
Robinson, a Texas A&M University alum, founded Dig World with Rick Bennett, whom he met during their freshman year of college. They knew then that they wanted to create a business together. “When we became aware of the idea that we could actually put kids on machines, it was a no-brainer,” Robinson says. “We had to figure out a way to get it done.”
The two founders spent the last four years researching and understanding the mechanisms behind creating an amusement park. Dig World officially opened in April 2022 at Katy Mills Mall. The 3.5-acre attraction gives both children and adults the opportunity to run full-size Caterpillar mini-excavators, skid steers, and utility terrain vehicles (UTV). “There are a few spots that exist around the country similar to this, but this is Texas’ first heavy equipment-themed amusement park geared primarily towards kids,” he says.
Dig World is as fun for adults as it is for kids. “We wanted to create an experience for families to enjoy an activity that they don’t get to do on a regular basis,” Robinson says. “The park is for everyone because teenagers have fun, little kids have fun, and even mom and dad have fun! The park is for the entire family but is geared more towards 3- to 9-year-olds.”
Dig World partners with the Texas A&M Department of Construction Science, whose purpose is to train and recruit the next generation of construction workers. “When schools come to Dig World for field trips, they will be taken through the curriculum developed by [Texas] A&M students,” Robinson says.
Rides are restricted by height, and children must be taller than 48 inches to operate all attractions by themselves. Children between 32 and 48 inches may ride and operate the machinery with an adult, and children under 32 inches cannot operate machinery but may utilize all other attractions in the park, which iincludes a gem-mining station, a playground, and a turf field with various yard games, such as TowerBall and cornhole. Because of DigWorld’s unique and educational concept, it already has had “wild success” in booking field trips, birthday parties, and corporate events, Robinson says.
The park is accessible for attendees with disabilities; however, they will need assistance when interacting with the machinery. Ensuring that it would serve those with special needs and wheelchair accessibility was an important factor for Robinson and his family. “We are developing different ramps, processes, and technologies that will allow individuals to operate the machinery more freely over the next few months,” he says. “We are ordering machinery through Caterpillar that will allow individuals to stay in their wheelchairs and essentially operate the machine right in front of them.”
“Seeing other kids like Pierce, especially in the special needs community, come out because they love machines while also getting to interact along with their parents has been really fun,” Robinson says.
Tickets are $24.99 for a two-hour reservation. All children 32 inches and under have free entry. Admission includes access to main attractions. Additional costs include access to gem mining, food and drink, and gift shop purchases. For more information, visit digworldtx.com.
