Texas Construction Theme Park Dig World Links Play to Industry's Labor Shortage
In 2022, Dig World, Texas's inaugural construction-themed amusement park, opened its doors in Katy, where kids can operate genuine construction machinery. The park was established by Jacob and Melissa Robinson, along with co-founder Rick Bennett, motivated by their son Pierce, who sustained a brain injury in 2017, resulting in special needs. Collaborating with Mustang Cat, the park offers supervised activities and educational resources from Texas A&M University. In 2025, Robinson appeared on Shark Tank, obtaining $200,000 in exchange for a 10 percent stake, with ambitions to launch ten parks within five years, beginning in Grapevine. The construction sector is grappling with a workforce shortage, exacerbated by immigration policies, as 32.5 percent of tradespeople are immigrants. AGC economist Ken Simonson supports the expansion of legal pathways.
Key facts
- Dig World, Texas's first construction-themed amusement park, opened in 2022 in Katy, Texas, spanning 3.5 acres.
- Founders Jacob and Melissa Robinson, with cofounder Rick Bennett, created the park for their son Pierce, who has special needs after a 2017 brain injury.
- The park partners with Mustang Cat and is overseen for safety by the Texas Department of Insurance.
- Dig World plans to expand to ten parks in five years after a $200,000 Shark Tank investment in 2025 for 10 percent equity.
- The first new location is scheduled to open in Grapevine, Texas, near Dallas.
- Immigration enforcement has affected nearly one-third of construction firms, according to AGC and NCCER surveys.
- 32.5 percent of construction tradespeople and one in four construction workers are immigrants, per a 2023 National Association of Home Builders survey.
- Dallas saw a 5 percent drop in construction jobs in the third quarter of 2025, the largest in the region, according to Federal Reserve of Dallas data.
- Only 10 percent of construction firms use H-2B or other temporary work visas.
- 57 percent of construction firms report candidates lack necessary qualifications, per AGC/NCCER.
Entities
Artists
- Jacob Robinson
- Melissa Robinson
- Pierce Robinson
- Rick Bennett
- Ken Simonson
- Pooja Desai
- George W. Bush
- Barack Obama
Institutions
- Dig World
- Mustang Cat
- Texas Department of Insurance
- Texas A&M University Department of Construction
- Dig'n Zone
- Diggerland USA
- Shark Tank
- Associated General Contractors of America
- National Center for Construction Education & Research
- National Association of Home Builders
- Federal Reserve of Dallas
- Trump administration
- ICE
- Secure Communities
Locations
- Katy
- Texas
- Houston
- Grapevine
- Dallas
- Tennessee
- New Jersey
- United States