Facts about Surprise

1. 08

   Surprise's planning department implemented a comprehensive master plan in 2015 that designated 25 percent of the city's 180 square miles for parks and open space preservation.

   SurpriseMay 14shareurbanplanningconservationdevelopment
2. 07

   Surprise's municipal government created the Surprise Innovation Hub in 2016 to attract technology companies and support entrepreneurship in the rapidly expanding Arizona city.

   SurpriseMay 14sharedevelopmenttechnologyeconomics
3. 06

   Surprise, Arizona adopted a sustainability plan in 2009 that aims to achieve net-zero water consumption by 2050 through aggressive conservation and recycled water infrastructure.

   SurpriseMay 14shareenvironmentsustainabilityplanning
4. 05

   Over 400,000 people now call Surprise home as of 2023, making it one of Arizona's fastest-growing metropolitan areas in the past two decades.

   SurpriseMay 14sharedemographicsgrowtharizona
5. 04

   At 180 square miles, Surprise ranks as one of Arizona's largest cities by land area despite its relatively recent incorporation in 1999.

   SurpriseMay 14sharegeographyurbanmeasurement
6. 03

   The Kansas City Royals and Chicago White Sox have held spring training operations in Surprise, Arizona since 2005 at a shared 16,000-seat stadium.

   SurpriseMay 14sharesportsmodernlocation
7. 02

   Surprise, Arizona experienced explosive growth from 2000 to 2010, increasing its population by 262 percent to reach approximately 117,517 residents.

   SurpriseMay 14sharedemographicsgrowthmeasurement
8. 01

   In 1938, developer J. Fred Petty founded Surprise, Arizona as a planned agricultural community in Maricopa County with just 14 residents initially.

   SurpriseMay 14sharehistorygeographyfounders