Our Perth-based partners, the Wave Park Group, announced preparations are well underway to establish two Wavegarden facilities in Australia in the coming years – one in Melbourne and the other in Sydney.
Branded Urbnsurf, the facilities will be the first surf parks in Australia and will feature our latest wave generating technologies delivering high quality, authentic surfing waves for all ages and levels.
Scheduled to open to the public in late 2017, the $18.5 million Urbnsurf Melbourne development has already received planning approval and will be located adjacent to the Essendon Football Club at Melbourne Airport. Multiple lagoon-side amenities will offer something for everyone, including a licensed café, surf shop, surf academy, beach cabanas, skate parks, playgrounds, as well as a rock-climbing and mountain bike track. State-of-the-art LED lagoon lighting will add the unique and exciting element of night surfing, permitting surfers to keep riding waves well beyond sunset.
Just weeks after the Melbourne announcement, the Wave Park Group also confirmed that they have been chosen to establish a Wavegarden surfing venue on a 3.2ha site, located at Sydney Olympic Park. The estimated $26.5 million development will feature the same array of high-quality amenities as Melbourne and will be easily accessible to millions of Sydney residents, potentially as early as 2019. The facility will incorporate sustainable design, renewable energy and eco-friendly water saving systems, in line with Sydney Olympic Park’s strong environmental ethos.
“Through the development of urban surfing environments, we are providing the opportunity for surfers to engage with their sport more frequently, more conveniently, and more safely – allowing them to simply ‘surf more’”, said Andrew Ross, founder and executive chairman of the Wave Park Group.
Each Urbnsurf project will generate over 300 jobs during the construction phase and another 45 full-time positions will be created after their doors open to the public. Furthermore, over their lifespan both projects will inject more than $250 million, respectively, in gross economic contribution to their local communities”, Ross added.
“The beauty of the Wavegarden technology is that it can accommodate the needs of all surfers in separate zones – from the smallest groms, and those starting out, through to the high performance training requirements of elite surfing athletes,” said Ross.
For Founder and CEO of Wavegarden, Mr. Josema Odriozola, the facilities in Melbourne and Sydney are the realization of a long-term plan to make surfing more accessible, to both participants and spectators, worldwide. “We are thrilled to be associated with the development of Urbnsurf in Australia. With a large existing surfing community and millions of tourists in Melbourne and Sydney each year, I can see these facilities becoming true destinations for new and experienced surfers alike.
