Surf legend proposes water park

Attraction would go near Jupiter

Surfing champion Kelly Slater hopes to bring a man-made surf park to Palm Beach County.

Slater, an 11-time world champion, is asking the county for permission to build a wave park on 80 acres at Palm Beach Park of Commerce, off Beeline Highway, west of Jupiter, according to the zoning application submitted.

“The project, named Surf Ranch Florida, will be proposing to construct a world-class, man-made surfing lake which will provide consistent waves and a safe environment for public recreational and competition purposes,” the zoning application says.

The project is proposed by the World Surf League using the wave technology Kelly Slater Wave Co. developed. Brian Waxman, the project lead, said: “We are considering a site in Palm Beach County due to Florida’s heritage of developing

world class competitive surfers, favorable weather and numerous amenities.”

Slater, a native of Cocoa Beach, in Brevard County, already built one wave park in California, according to Bloomberg.com. He astonished the surfing world by releasing a video titled “Kelly’s Wave” in December 2015.

“I’m so excited that the World Surf League is working to bring the first high performance center with our wave technology to my home state of Florida and I’m hopeful this will become a reality soon,” Slater said in a statement.

As seen in that video and others the Kelly Slater Wave Co. has released since, the park can produce the kind of waves rarely seen at Florida surf breaks: powerful, barreling rights with clean faces that can be ridden for a full minute — a lifetime in Florida surfing.

While most of the waves seen in these videos appear to resemble those found in the open ocean, Slater says the height, speed and shape of the waves can be adjusted. The park also appears able to accommodate all surfing styles, with shortboarders and longboarders alike seen riding the waves in the videos.

Perhaps most significant, the park could provide yearround surfing.

The Palm Beach County Commission will hear about the proposal in an upcoming meeting.

Said Palm Beach County Commissioner Steven Abrams: “It sounds exciting. It could be a real draw for the county.”