Buzz intenstifies as Fort Pierce furthers Florida’s latest wave pool dream
The old citrus and fishing town of Fort Pierce is next on the list of upcoming wave pools in America, and this one is set to rival the grandness and rip-ability of Wave Park in South Korea. The Fort Pierce project is planning a 56-module Cove that will offer rides of up to 16-seconds.
The development is part of the nearly $600 million Willow Lakes Resort Village community which will cover approximately 200 acres. Plans call for office and retail space along with 600 hotel rooms and 800 residential homes. Initial phases are expected to bring hundreds of construction jobs to the area.
Willow Lakes was given the green light last year when the city rezoned the property on the northwest corner of Interstate 95.
“The site is at an Interstate 95 interchange that was too far south of Fort Pierce and a bit too far north of booming Port St. Lucie to have any development, not even a gas station,” Dave Martin told WavePoolMag. “Fort Pierce remains a depressed area, no big new housing projects, unlike Port St. Lucie and Vero Beach. So it’s really a northern Port St. Lucie project, one exit north of a busy shopping and business district.”
The development by Surfworks is welcomed by many, as Fort Pierce aims to one-up their neighbor. While Port St Lucie is planning a giant 1.1 million square foot Amazon fulfillment center, the Surfworks wave pool plans to make its mark with America’s biggest 56-module Cove.
The more modules a Cove has the more horsepower it has for thicker and longer waves. Wave Park in South Korea has 56 modules, followed by Praia da Grama in Brazil. After that, both Melbourne and Switzerland have 46, with The Wave in Bristol boasting 40.
When can you surf? Developers submitted a site plan for the project’s first phase which the city should approve by the end of 2021 according to TCPalm. Then come the building permits and once that clears they can begin construction on the roads, utilities and all necessary infrastructure to bring such a project to life.
American Surf Parks says they are developing surf park resorts throughout the US under the brand name Surfworks. These resorts will be year-round entertainment-led, mixed-use destinations, anchored by Wavegarden Cove surfing lagoons. Their first project will be in Myrtle Beach South Carolina.
Previous WavePoolMag article on Fort Pierce
Main image by D Ramey Logan courtesy of Wikimedia
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