After months of deliberation, The Wave: Bristol has announced the location for its new $9.7 million Surf Park facility. The new project site will be housed at Washingpool Farm in Easter Compton, Almondsbury and could be fully functional as early as Summer 2014.
According to the owners, the previous location, a 13 acre plot of land along the Portway near Sea Mills, was too small and faced backlash from environmentalists looking to protect Avon Gorge.
While the new location adds an additional $1.9 million to the project cost, owners Nick Hounsfield and Tobin Coles, are confident in the choice for the new location.Washington farm released that the “surfing lake” will measure 300 metres long by 150 metres wide, and is capable of creating perfect waves up to 1.6 metres high with 20 second rides using the latest Wavegarden technology.
The Wave: Bristol announced that they would charge $8 entrance fee plus $24 for an hour to surf in the park. They project that the Surf Park can accommodate two surfers on the reef and 30 in the learning bay at any given time.
Based on initial statements, environmentalism and sustainability exist at the heart of the project. To help with the planning, The Wave: Bristol has hired Chris Hines MBE, founder of Surfers Against Sewage and the director of sustainability at the Eden Project. Owner Hounsfield says,”We want people to have the feeling of leaving technology behind and going into nature – that fits with our ethos…The rest of the land will be landscaped sensitively, with a sense of both gardens and an arboretum.”
As the project continues to move forward, the next steps are to engage the local residents in South Gloucestershire. Owner, Tobin Coles says, “We have sent a letter to residents and are talking to local elected representatives to explain our proposals. We will be contacting them in the coming weeks about how they can get involved and have their say.”
Stay tuned for me updates.
Watch ITV’s interview with The Wave:Bristol
For more information check out the Bristol Post’s article.
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