PHARRELL WILLIAMS
Check out Atlantic Park, Pharrell Williams’ $330m surf park project
Williams, 50, is building a spectacular surf park in his beachside home town. Set to open in 2025, it will include a cutting-edge wave pool.
Musician and fashion designer Pharrell Williams is working on an ambitious project that aims to revolutionise surf culture in his home town, Virginia Beach, which sits on the United States’ southeast coast.
Together with the real-estate company Venture Realty Group, the 13-time Grammy winner is developing Atlantic Park, a $330 million surf park that will include a state-of-the-art wave pool and a number of other attractions.
What will Atlantic Park include?
The project’s signature amenity will be a three-acre lagoon that will offer ideal surfing conditions all year round, by harnessing the same wave-making technology used at Wavegarden, a surf park in northern Spain.
Located in the area of Virginia Beach known as the Oceanfront, Atlantic Park will also feature apartments, office space, restaurants, and an exclusive shopping experience curated by Louis Vuitton, the fashion house where Williams was appointed as men’s creative director in February this year.
In addition, the surf park will feature educational initiatives and cultural attractions. It will host workshops and seminars on issues such as marine conservation, and will be a place where up-and-coming artists will be given a platform to exhibit their work. The development will also boast a music venue and a cinema.
Slated to open in summer 2025, Atlantic Park is to be built on the site of the Dome, a former Virginia Beach concert venue that was demolished in the 1990s.
Atlantic Park project “started when I was a kid” - Williams
“In a way, this project started when I was a kid, riding to work with my grandmother, who worked at the Oceanfront,” Williams says. “My ride would always take me past the old Dome site. I was always intrigued by the futuristic façade of the building. It made my young imagination run wild.
“It’s incredible that today, I have the opportunity to bring the Dome back to life in a way that’s so inspiring.”