PHX Surf now says its long-awaited surf resort on Maricopa’s west side is on track to break ground in March, according to new design details released today from AO, the project’s architecture firm.

The updated 40-acre plan confirms the latest iteration of a project that has steadily shifted since it first entered the public conversation in 2021. What began as a $100 million waterpark filled with waterslides and a lazy river has evolved into a wellness-focused retreat built around a 137,000-square-foot surf lagoon and a resort environment developers describe as “barefoot luxury.”

AO, the Orange, Calif.-based firm behind DSRT Surf in Palm Desert and other surf-focused destinations, announced Tuesday it will serve as architect of record, design architect and landscape architect for the Maricopa project. Its role includes the lagoon’s infrastructure and the design of the broader resort, hotel district, restaurant and retail spaces, and landscape environment.

New renderings show PHX Surf’s planned surf lagoon and resort village, which developers say will break ground in March 2026 on Maricopa’s west side. [AO]

New renderings show PHX Surf’s planned surf lagoon and resort village, which developers say will break ground in March 2026 on Maricopa’s west side. [AO]

New renderings show PHX Surf’s planned surf lagoon and resort village, which developers say will break ground in March 2026 on Maricopa’s west side. [AO]

New renderings show PHX Surf’s planned surf lagoon and resort village, which developers say will break ground in March 2026 on Maricopa’s west side. [AO]

137,000-square-foot surf lagoon anchors the project

The updated plan centers on an ES48 surf lagoon powered by Endless Surf’s pneumatic wave system, the same technology introduced at Surftown in Munich. PHX Surf’s lagoon follows the “sunglasses-shaped” template unveiled in that 2024 German project, replacing the two rectangular wave basins first shown to Maricopa residents years ago.

Developers say the lagoon’s dual bays will support multiple skill levels operating simultaneously, a key part of the Surf Academy and surf training programs planned onsite.

100 3D-printed villas, rooftop decks and a wellness campus

The newly released AO designs showcase a hotel district with 100 individual bungalows, some with rooftop decks. As PHX Surf leaders previewed last year, the villas will be 3D printed by Icon, the Austin-based construction technology company known for its curved, organic structures.

Renderings show the same rounded, adobe-like forms LaGrassa previously described to InMaricopa, a Tatooine-meets-Sonoran-Desert aesthetic intended to avoid “any straight walls” and reinforce the project’s emphasis on natural materials and earth tones.

The resort district also includes multiple dining concepts, a fitness center, outdoor pools and gardens, and a full-service spa and wellness center that will deliver the brand’s increasingly central emphasis on health, recovery and restorative programming.

Retail, Surf Academy Village and future phases

Other confirmed elements include a surf-focused retail district, a dedicated surf shop, and an administration and ticketing hub that will anchor the Surf Center and Surf Academy Village.

AO’s announcement also outlines a second phase that mirrors previous filings to the city:
• A 3.7-acre event and entertainment venue
• A 17.8-acre water park
• A 1.2-acre pump track
• A 4.4-acre RV district with 30 campsites

Those amenities would follow the lagoon, hotel district and wellness center in later construction cycles.

Developers emphasize collaboration and renewed momentum

In a statement today, AO partner Bruce Greenfield said PHX Surf is intended to be more than a wave pool, describing it as an ecosystem where surf, hospitality and wellness intersect. PHX Surf CEO Erin LaGrassa echoed that framing, saying the vision has become increasingly about partnership and creating an oasis-type destination unique to the region.

The announcement marks the first major public update since developers told InMaricopa last year that a groundbreaking could happen as early as December 2024. That timeline passed quietly as plans continued to evolve and the project entered deeper design review.

With AO’s new design package now public, PHX Surf leaders say the 2026 groundbreaking target reflects their updated construction sequencing and the scale of the revised resort plan.

The project is planned for the southwest corner of State Route 238 and Loma Road.