Surf centre gets green light at Sydney Olympic Park

An artificial surf park at Sydney’s Olympic Park has been given the green light.

The $24 million URBNSURF wave park, first mooted in early 2016, has received approval from the New South Wales Department of Planning and Environment and will begin construction later this year.

Among the features at the attraction will be a wave generator that creates two surf breaks, catering for beginner and experienced surfers, and will pump out up to 1000 waves an hour.

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There will also be a toddler pool, adventure playground, mini half-pipe skate ramp and climbing wall, according to the plans.

URBN Surf (Sydney) Pty Ltd, which lodged the proposal last year, hopes to have it up and running in the second half of 2019.

Urbn Surf will operate the new surfing facility at Sydney Olympic Park.

The NSW Government’s Executive Director of Key Sites and Industry Assessments, Anthea Sargeant, says the facility will be world class.

“This is a wonderful opportunity to give the people of western Sydney easy access to fun, healthy outdoor recreational facilities,” Sargeant says.

“It’s an innovative proposal, offering the chance to have world class surfing at Sydney Olympic Park in Homebush, 25km from the ocean.

“The lagoon, which will allow for 80 patrons an hour, will have a wave generator that creates various swell conditions.”

In addition to the surfing lagoon, the facility will include a retail shop, café, indoor restaurant and alfresco bar, change rooms, rental area, two-storey surf academy and first aid and lifeguard rooms.

The attraction will feature a surfing lagoon and other pools.

The park is expected to be open 6am to 10pm every day, with the bar and restaurant open until midnight on Friday and Saturdays.

Sargeant says the proposal has received mostly positive reviews and is in line with the ongoing development of the Olympic Park precinct.

“The Department supports the proposal as it provides a world class sports and recreational facility for surfing, which is consistent with the vision for Sydney Olympic Park,” she says.

“It has been designed to encourage non-car transport. The main building is oriented to face the Holker Busway as the main arrival point, and the project will also benefit from new public transport infrastructure such as the Parramatta Light Rail which will service Sydney Olympic Park.

“The project also meets design excellence standards, which include a high level of shading across key areas, and the use of sustainable building materials, solar panels and rain water collection and reuse on-site, and a green roof over the main entry plaza.”