On May 1, Central Arizona Project, along with its construction partner Mortenson, broke ground on CAP’s new Water Education Center, a 32,000-square-foot facility located near CAP’s headquarters north of Pinnacle Peak Road, west of 7th Street.
Tempe-based architecture firm Jones Studio designed the project. The Water Education Center will be the first building to span the CAP canal, which delivers Colorado River water to the region in central and southern Arizona where more than six million people reside.
“At Mortenson, we are thrilled to become an integral part of Arizona’s water story, a narrative rich with history and the vital importance of water in our desert environment,” Mortenson Design Phase Executive Lisa York said.
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“I like to think of us all as citizens of this watershed,” Jones Studio Principal Brian Farling said. “And with that responsibility, I believe that everything we design and build in this extraordinary place should reinforce and celebrate our connection to its most precious resource.”
The center’s design includes indoor exhibit and multi-purpose gathering rooms, as well as a large outdoor gathering space. Once complete, it will offer interactive exhibits, educational programming and a collaborative space for water policy discussions and Central Arizona Water Conservation District’s Board of Directors meetings.
“This Water Education Center will be a huge step forward in the progress of Arizona’s water story … a place where children can learn more, members of the public can engage with CAP and Arizona water leaders can convene to discuss the future,” CAWCD Board President Terry Goddard said. “This will be a place to share CAP’s story – a story we can’t wait to tell.”
“We deliver water to the desert,” CAP General Manager Brenda Burman said. “We are smart about how we do it. Our water users are smart with how they use it. This will be a place where the public can also get water smart.”
Construction on the Water Education Center is scheduled to be completed in fall 2026.
