Rick Hill was engaged by two surfing and scuba diving enthusiasts and developers from the Phoenix, Arizona market to collaborate on the realization of their dream, which was to create a water based adventure resort and attraction in the desert.
The primary concept of Waveyard was to develop hotels, condos, apartments and a village of shops around a lagoon with the world’s largest surf pool and a one mile long Olympic white water rafting course. Other planned attractions included a saltwater dive world, technical kayaking plunge pools and an ice climbing wall.
Working with the New York office of Callison Architects, a plan was developed for 180,000 square feet of shops, restaurants and cafes. Shops and cafes were organized in four districts. The first district was a beach zone situated to be developed along the world’s largest manmade surf pool. The district included a boardwalk with cabana shops and walk-up food stands with common seating areas. The second district clustered outdoor adventure shops together and the third district included more upscale fashion shops and restaurants in a mythical village. The fourth district was an island entertainment center.