The short version
As of June 2026, Draper City Council has approved an amended master plan for Veranda West, a transit-adjacent development west of I-15 off Bangerter Highway that now includes an 8.8-acre surf park. Construction on the surf park is expected to start this fall with a 2028 opening, and the facility is planned to serve as a national Olympic training venue for the U.S. men's and women's surf teams. For buyers and sellers in Draper, where the median sale price sat around $758,500 in May 2026 with homes going under contract in about 8 days, an anchor amenity of this scale is a real factor to track.
What was actually approved on June 9
The Draper City Council green-lit a master plan amendment for Veranda West, a project that sits in the city's transit station district zone north of Bangerter Highway, just off 600 West. The plan now includes 418 residential units (more than 100 townhomes already built, plus roughly 300 apartments), a retail village with restaurants, and the 8.8-acre surf park.
The original master plan was adopted in 2019 and lightly amended in 2020. The June 2026 change is the big one. It expanded the apartment count, grew the retail footprint, and added the surf component.
The Wasatch Group is the developer, and Kainoa Clark, the company's chief marketing officer, told KSL the park will use advanced wave technology capable of producing "consistent and customizable waves for surfers of all skill levels." Jackson Sheppard of Kamaka Responsible Development confirmed to the council that the venue will function as a national Olympic training center, joining a small list of facilities globally that serve at that level. (KSL, June 16, 2026)
The water question, addressed directly
Utah is in a drought. State leaders and residents pushed back on the water use, and developers came to the council with numbers. The surf pool is projected to use 6 to 9 million gallons of water per year. For context, Sheppard told the council that high-density housing on the same footprint would use roughly 28 million gallons, and commercial development would use closer to 109 million.
The system runs on a closed loop and is designed to capture rainfall and snowmelt to offset evaporation. Whether that satisfies long-term water policy in Utah is a separate conversation, but the numbers presented to the city are public record.
Why Draper, and why now
Two things are happening at the southern end of Salt Lake Valley at the same time, and they're worth looking at together.
The first is The Point, the state-led redevelopment on roughly 600 acres of the former Utah State Prison site. Phase one alone covers about 100 acres and is planned to include more than 3,300 multi-family residential units, 16 acres of parks, 2 million square feet of office, a 2,000-seat event center, retail, and grocery. (Draper Journal) The University of Utah board of trustees recently approved a $43.5 million land purchase at The Point for a 46-acre medical campus that will include a 200,000-square-foot hospital. (KSL)
The second is Veranda West. Smaller in scope, but adding a category of amenity Utah hasn't had before.
Both projects sit in Draper. Both are within minutes of I-15. Both are betting that the southern stretch of the Salt Lake Valley becomes a destination, not just a commute. If you want a baseline read on the city itself before either project changes the picture, our Living in Draper neighborhood guide walks through what the area looks like today.
What surf parks tend to do to nearby property values
There's some early data on this from other markets. A public-access surf lagoon in Florida saw nearby home sale prices rise about 21% during pre-construction, compared to 1 to 5% increases in competing developments without the amenity (Endless Surf). In Praia da Grama, Brazil, land prices climbed from roughly $60 per square meter to $500 per square meter after a wave pool was added to the development (Wave Pool Mag).
Those are not Utah comps. Different markets, different scales, different price floors. But the pattern is consistent enough that it's worth paying attention to: a wave pool functions as an anchor amenity, similar to the way a golf course or a flagship retail tenant has historically anchored a master-planned community.
We've written about this same dynamic in two other recent Utah cases. The Osmonds' Vesper Amphitheater at the base of Provo Canyon is doing something similar for Utah County, and we ran the same kind of analysis on the potential SLC MLB stadium impact. The pattern repeats: the lift usually concentrates inside the immediate development and the closest surrounding inventory. Homes inside Veranda West will see the most direct effect. Homes a mile or two away will pull a softer benefit, mostly through the broader story of Draper becoming a more amenity-rich city.
In our experience working with Draper buyers
What we've been hearing from relocators (especially from California and Texas) is that they want the outdoor lifestyle Utah is known for, but they also want something for the family on a Tuesday in February when there's no powder and the trails are muddy. A year-round surf park, paired with the existing Loveland Living Planet Aquarium, Corner Canyon Regional Park, and the trail network into Lone Peak Wilderness, is a category Draper hasn't had until now. It changes the pitch.
What it means for Draper buyers right now
If you're shopping in Draper today, three things are worth keeping in mind:
- The surf park won't open until 2028. Don't pay a 2028 premium in 2026 unless the home is genuinely a fit on its own merits.
- Inventory inside Veranda West will likely list at a premium once the park breaks ground this fall. If you want exposure to the amenity at the lowest entry point, the townhomes already built in the development are the place to watch. You can browse active Draper-area listings here.
- Surrounding Draper neighborhoods (Suncrest, South Mountain, Willow Creek, the Historic District) won't see the same direct lift, but the broader narrative of Draper as a destination city is strengthening. That's a slower, longer-horizon factor.
What it means for Draper sellers
If you're thinking about selling in the next 12 to 24 months, this is a tailwind worth using in your listing narrative. Buyers relocating into Draper are increasingly asking about lifestyle infrastructure, not just square footage and finishes. A clear, factual mention of nearby amenities (Veranda West, The Point, the new U of U medical campus) belongs in your marketing.
It is not, however, a reason to overprice. Draper homes are still selling close to list (about 99.8% of final list price in May 2026, per local MLS data), and overpricing into a story tends to lengthen days on market rather than capture the premium. If you want a baseline before you list, request a home valuation and we'll pull recent comps for your specific street.
FAQ
Where exactly is the new Draper surf park being built? The Veranda West project sits on the north side of Bangerter Highway, just off 600 West, west of I-15. The site is inside Draper's transit station district zone.
When will the Draper surf park open? Per developer Wasatch Group, construction is anticipated to start in fall 2026, with a target opening in 2028.
Who is building the surf park in Draper? The Wasatch Group is the lead developer, working with Kamaka Responsible Development. The surf park itself is part of the broader Veranda West master plan.
Will the surf park really be an Olympic training center? According to statements made to the Draper City Council on June 9, 2026, the facility is planned to serve as a national training venue for U.S. men's and women's Olympic surf teams.
How much water will the Draper surf park use? Developers project 6 to 9 million gallons per year, using a closed-loop system that captures rainfall and snowmelt. For comparison, they presented to the council that high-density housing on the same acreage would use roughly 28 million gallons annually, and commercial development would use about 109 million.
Will the surf park increase home values in Draper? Outside markets with comparable wave-pool projects have seen meaningful price lifts inside the immediate development (a Florida lagoon saw 21% pre-construction price growth in nearby inventory). The effect tends to concentrate close to the amenity. Broader Draper neighborhoods will likely see a softer, slower lift tied to the city's growing destination appeal.
Is this connected to The Point development? No. Veranda West and The Point are separate projects with different developers. They are, however, both in Draper and both reshaping the southern end of Salt Lake Valley at the same time.
What's the current Draper housing market look like? As of May 2026, the median sold price in Draper was around $758,500, with homes going to contract in roughly 8 days at about 99.8% of list price (Best Utah Real Estate, May 2026 MLS data). The Zillow Home Value Index showed Draper at $803,331 as of April 2026, up 2.2% year over year.
Want a clearer read on how this affects your specific neighborhood?
The Veranda West surf park is one of several developments reshaping how Draper fits into the broader Salt Lake County and Utah County real estate picture. If you're weighing a move into Draper, sitting on a home you're thinking about selling, or watching from California or Texas and trying to figure out where to land, we'd rather have a direct conversation than guess from a distance.
Reach out to Foundry Group or call us at (801) 228-0170 and we'll walk you through it.
