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A global developer has secured the exclusive rights to man-made, wave-generating surfing technology for nine markets in North America, including Dallas.
Aventuur revealed Tuesday that it has plans to roll out Wavegarden's Cove offering across the United States and Baja California Sur within mixed-use surf, leisure and wellbeing destinations.
Those destinations would be anchored by 5.5-acre surfing lagoons within broader mixed-use developments expected to consist of hospitality, retail and residential components. Amenities could incorporate cafes, restaurants, beach clubs, fitness and well studios, and creative offices, among other neighborhood services.
Each spot requires about $50 million to $100 million in development capital, the company said, and it has already raised $12 million from high net-worth individuals, family offices, and private investment firms to aid in its North American rollout.
“These developments are unique in that they combine a highly cash-generative operating business with long-term real estate value creation,” said Aventuur Co-Founder and Chief Investment Officer Richard Duff in a prepared statement.
“A common misconception is that the surfing lagoon is loss-leading and requires the surrounding real estate to do the heavy lifting, however in reality it more than justifies its cost of capital. Further, what we have seen with our existing projects is that the surfing lagoon’s visitation placemakes the development, driving premium rents and above-market development margins for the complementary wellness, leisure, and hospitality offerings,” Duff said.
Wavegarden already opted for Aventuur as its preferred development partner in Los Angeles and New York. In addition to Dallas, it has now secured those rights in Atlanta, Austin, Denver, Jacksonville, Las Vegas, Nashville, Phoenix, and Los Cabos (Baja California Sur).
Renderings of Aventuur's forthcoming Auckland and Perth surf parks are shown in the gallery at the top of this story, along with images of Wavegarden's surfing technology in action.
The company, which is led in part by former World Surf League professional surfer Adrian "Ace" Buchan, also has the exclusive rights to Wavegarden technology in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and Fiji. It is already underway with two development projects in Australia and New Zealand.
With a total footprint across 18 territories and three continents, Aventuur has the capacity to serve up to 100 million residents and 350 million tourists with its surf-simulation technology, it said.
Aventuur is not the only company eyeing Dallas as a non-coastal surfing outpost.
GoodSurf, led by TopGolf veteran Zach Shor, is looking to bring a surfing-beer garden outpost to Dallas' Deep Ellum neighborhood.
The Dallas-based company, which is a subsidiary of Urban Entertainment Concepts, recently acquired stationary wave company CityWave North America as it looks to aid in growing surfing's popularity across the U.S.