(Please click on the image above to view our short YouTube video)

The Desert Sun’s Melissa Daniels recently provided an update on the status of the 4 surf parks under development in the Desert. While coronavirus pandemic related concerns have caused some financing delays and moved planned opening dates into 2022, all of the projects are proceeding. Some highlights:

Thermal Beach Club

Current plans for the Thermal Beach Club call for up to 326 luxury homes built around a 20 acre surf lagoon. Access to the lagoon and surfing activities will be exclusive to residents and their guests. The development would be built on about 5% of the approximately 2,200-acre Kohl Ranch on Avenue 66, which also includes the Desert Mirage school complex, the 400-acre Thermal Motor Sports facility and the BMW Performance Driving Center. The ranch is a neighborhood-sized development of property owned by the real estate arm of the Kohl family, founders of the Kohl department store chain.

The Riverside County Planning Commission signed off on Thermal Beach Club last fall, but plans stalled when the Riverside County Board of Supervisors deferred a vote on approval amid resident concerns over affordable housing. With developers making new commitments to support affordable housing, the project will be back in front of the supervisors on Oct. 27. If approved, the next step for the project would be obtaining building permits. After that, construction is estimated to be about 24 months, with an opening sometime in 2023. 

Coral Mountain Surf Ranch

About 15 miles west of the Thermal Beach Club, a 16-acre wave pool with technology from surfing legend Kelly Slater is proposed for the Coral Mountain development in La Quinta. Plans call for up to 600 homes and a 150-room hotel. Like Thermal Beach Club, Coral Mountain will be private, but it will have a hotel to cater to travelers. The developers are nearing the end of their application process with the city and hope to have public hearings in the beginning of 2021, with the goal of having the first round of guests in 2023. 

DSRT Surf

The Palm Desert city council signed off on plans for DSRT Surf in November. Plans call for a 5.5-acre wave lagoon, up to two hotels and up to 88 residential villas on the 15-acre property, located near the Desert Willow Golf Resort. Developers Desert Wave Ventures LLC plan on submitting final plans to the city for approval in the next four to six weeks, closing on the land early next year, beginning construction after that and opening in 2023.

Palm Springs Surf Club 

The Palm Springs Planning Commission last October approved the Palm Springs Surf Club at the shuttered Wet 'N' Wild waterpark on Gene Autry Trail. Unlike the other projects, the Palm Springs Surf Club doesn't have a residential component and will be open to the public. The developers have outfitted an existing pool with wave-making technology to provide a proof of concept to investors. Completion of the $50 million project, including a 3 million-gallon pool wave pool, has been pushed back to 2022. Other amenities at the park when completed will include a lazy river and onsite restaurant.

Hyatt Indian Wells Resort & Spa HyTides Water Plunge Water Park & Desert Twist Lazy River

These 4 surf parks follow on the heals of the recent opening of the $8 million HyTides Plunge Water Park and Desert Twist Lazy River at the Hyatt Indian Wells Resort & Spa. This water park features HyTides Plunge, a set of 30-foot dueling waterslides, a 450-foot lazy river and a splash pad filled with dumping buckets, water cannons and more. The water park is in addition to the resort’s seven pools.

You can read Melissa Daniels original article, courtesy of The Desert Sun, at: https://www.desertsun.com/story/money/business/2020/10/16/thermal-beach-club-plans-back-riverside-county-agenda-amid-concerns/3645458001/

CalDRE# 01896117 | 01898254 | 01991628