Jeanine Jerkovic of the City of Surprise explains how the Greater Phoenix region city is deploying smart technologies to mitigate the unique challenges of rapid urban expansion.
Once a quiet, suburban community best known for hosting Major League Baseball’s Spring Training, the City of Surprise, Arizona, has undergone a dramatic transformation. Situated in the northwest Greater Phoenix region, Surprise is now experiencing a surging population boom, bringing both tremendous opportunities and significant challenges.
Over just the past five years, the city’s population has surged nearly 20 per cent, growing from 143,148 in 2020 to more than 165,000 residents today – and expects to add more than 80,000 more people by 2030 according to growth projections.
While growth has long been a trademark of Surprise, the post-2020 era has uncovered a new frontier; one in which the City is actively deploying smart technologies to mitigate the unique challenges of rapid urban expansion. From addressing connectivity gaps to improving public services, Surprise is embracing cutting-edge innovations to ensure its residents and businesses thrive in this dynamic environment.
Accelerating Surprise’s connectivity to keep up with demand
In early 2023, the City’s Information Technology (IT) Department began fielding urgent calls regarding poor cellular and internet service, particularly in high-growth residential areas of Surprise. The issue wasn’t just one of convenience – it was a matter of public safety. In newer, less accessible parts of the community, dropped calls and connectivity failures posed serious risks during emergencies.
Tracy Mills, IT department technical services manager, explains: “We contacted telecom and fibre carriers and discovered that the primary challenge was securing suitable locations for towers, compounded by height restrictions defined by our code and by proximity to Luke Air Force Base.”
Recognising a traditional private sector-led approach wouldn’t suffice, the City took a proactive stance, leveraging its own properties to host cell towers. Collaboration with the Surprise Water Resources Management Department and the Fire-Medical Department (SFMD) enabled the City to identify strategic sites, minimising roadblocks that had previously deterred carriers.
Through these efforts, Surprise developed ground leases for carrier expansion, carving out a “sweet spot” of 1,500 square feet per site to facilitate infrastructure deployment. The Community Development Department did a benchmarking review of tower heights and setbacks of other cities and established an allowable height of 65 feet for a tower with a maximum antennae height of 80 feet. The impact has been significant: since 2020, Surprise has processed 22 telecom carrier permits, a sharp increase from zero just four years ago. Additional partnerships, such as those with retail developer SimonCRE, are further strengthening connectivity in highly populated commercial zones.
Director of strategic initiatives Brad Mecham acknowledges the ongoing nature of the challenge: “It’s a long process – convincing carriers to invest millions in new towers takes time, and then permitting takes another three to four months,” he says. “But we’re committed to making it happen.”
Beyond cell towers, the City is in the process of developing a broadband strategy to promote future smart infrastructure. The City is leveraging partnerships with the Arizona Sun Corridor, a partnership of Arizona’s three state universities, to create direct high-speed connections; with The Connective, a Greater Phoenix smart cities collaboration; and local telecom provider Wyyerd. Notably, Surprise was one of just three Greater Phoenix communities awarded the Arizona Broadband Development Grant in 2022, bringing more than 40 linear miles of fibre with a value of $1.6m to underserved Surprise neighbourhoods.
Serving the homeless through SAFE Reporting
In response to growing concerns about homelessness, Surprise launched the Surprise Area Focused on Encampments (SAFE) Reporting App in 2024. This mobile tool empowers residents to report unhoused individuals and encampments, connecting them with vital outreach services.
The app was born from a need to efficiently identify and assist the city’s most vulnerable populations, especially in the wake of post-2020 public health and economic challenges. SAFE Reporting offers a user-friendly platform for residents to notify City officials about individuals in need, helping law enforcement and social services deploy targeted interventions.
Director of the Human Service & Community Vitality (HSCV) Department Seth Dyson emphasises the app’s adaptability: “We needed SAFE Reporting to be versatile so it could meet the needs of a broad range of users.”
Early adoption by law enforcement and community partners has already yielded results, with the app enabling the City to map high-need areas and coordinate strategic outreach efforts.
Surprise economic development uncovers digital twin opportunities
Marketing new economic development opportunities for a rapidly evolving city can be a challenge, and Surprise is embracing digital twin technology to stay ahead of the curve. Elm Street at Surprise City Centre is the city’s newly developing walkable downtown and retail corridor – and a prime example of a development that demands innovative marketing strategies.
Historically, Surprise has struggled with an unfair reputation of being too far from the centre of Greater Phoenix. To change this narrative, the City partnered with WESTMARC and Arizona State University’s (ASU) Next Lab through a grant from Cox Communications to develop the West Valley’s first pilot digital twin. The use of a digital twin for economic development marketing is enabling the City to showcase Surprise in a more experiential way that static marketing materials simply can’t.
Digital twins, which are virtual models of real-world environments, are typically used for city planning and infrastructure management. Surprise sees them as a game-changer for economic development, providing an immersive experience for potential investors, brokers and residents. The ASU Next Lab pilot has also had the added benefit of fostering interdepartmental collaboration within the City of Surprise, bringing together the City’s planners, marketing experts, economic developers and technologists to envision broader applications for digital twin and related smart technologies.
Currently, the City is beta-testing the ASU digital twin with key stakeholders, including The Connective, which is currently helping Surprise consider platforms that would offer interoperability with other Greater Phoenix cities. Surprise plans to publicly launch the Elm Street model in mid-to-late 2025.
Surprise Flock cameras kick-off smart policing
It’s just a fact – more people, more problems, and in growing cities like Surprise those problems can lead to crime. Last year the Surprise Police Department sought out ways that technology could help solve more crimes in the booming suburb, where cars are the primary form of transportation.
A Flock camera system, which serves as a super-collector of vehicle licence plate data, turned out to be the right solution at the right time. The Flock camera database can now be readily accessed by law enforcement and operators as part of the City’s newly created Real Time Crime Centre, a centre dedicated to consolidating and developing trend data that can assist in criminal investigations – and even inform officers in real-time responding to calls in progress.
Surprise Police Chief Benny Piña recognised early on that other agencies throughout the valley were using smart technology to investigate crimes and wanted to bring smart technology solutions to the City of Surprise. “A Real Time Crime Centre was the first step to bring new technologies like Flock cameras together,” said Chief Piña. “The long-term plan is to expand the network of Flock cameras and licence plate readers across the city – and across the valley, sharing information across jurisdictions.”
The Flock camera technology has already assisted Surprise with multiple investigations as well as locating and apprehending suspects in violent crimes, including homicides. Today, when suspects flee a crime scene, sharing licence plate data quickly helps the identification of offenders. New technologies can help the Surprise Police Department have a positive impact on deterring crime, which makes Surprise an even safer place to live, work and enjoy.
Surprise emergency responders boost response times through tech upgrade
Seconds matter in emergencies, and growing traffic congestion makes it harder for cities like Surprise to ensure fast response times. To improve its emergency vehicle operations, the City of Surprise upgraded its legacy optical systems. The previous setup had limitations like range and line-of-sight restrictions, along with logistical and financial constraints.
The solution? The City’s Transportation Department implemented Traction Priority™ technology, a GPS-based system that connects its vehicles with each other, with the internet, and infrastructure.
Traction Priority™ technology enables emergency vehicles to communicate with traffic signals earlier, even from a distance, allowing the system to adjust signal timing. This results in green lights arriving sooner and reduces traffic congestion, allowing emergency vehicles to move more quickly and safely. The technology also minimises the need for vehicles to drive into oncoming traffic to bypass stalled traffic.
Early results have been promising, with SFMD crews and Transportation staff reporting fewer traffic delays during emergency responses. The collaboration between SFMD and the Transportation Department was crucial for success, ensuring the solution met the needs of both departments and contributed to safer, more efficient emergency responses.
Surprise adds smart sanitation tech to trucks for efficiency and sustainability
When it comes to tech, there’s no ‘trash’ talk in Surprise – it’s all action. The Surprise Public Works Department has embraced smart technology to revolutionise its solid waste management, rolling out three new tech innovations aimed at enhancing efficiency, reducing costs and improving service levels, including:
- Routeware, an AI-powered routing software replaced outdated paper maps with turn-by-turn navigation on iPads for the City’s daily trash pick-up routes. This upgrade has drastically streamlined route planning, reducing what had been an hour-long manual task to just five minutes. Routeware’s implementation is eliminating inefficiencies, reducing errors, saving drivers time and optimising fuel consumption
- Samsara-powered outward-facing cameras now equip solid waste vehicles to enhance accident investigations. These cameras provide objective evidence in incidents, eliminating the “he said/she said” factor and protect both the City and its residents from liability disputes
- GPS tracking and onboard cameras enable real-time service verification for sanitation truck drivers. This upgrade allows the public works team to monitor each time sanitation trucks pick up a container and significantly reduces “go-backs,” which also helps with fuel savings, reducing driver overtime and call centre requests.
As Surprise continues to grow and expand its smart city initiatives, this smart sanitation system sets a benchmark for operational excellence, sustainability and enhanced community service.
Conclusion: opportunities and obstacles
Rapid urban growth presents both opportunities and obstacles, and the City of Surprise is proving that technology can be a powerful ally in managing change. By prioritising connectivity, social services, economic development and public safety, Surprise is setting a new benchmark for smart city innovation. Through collaboration, strategic partnerships and a forward-thinking approach, the City is paving the way for a future-ready community that can sustain its remarkable trajectory.
Central to this innovative approach is Surprise’s involvement with The Connective, uniting cities, universities, and organisations to build an innovative, connected region. The Connective provides Surprise access to resources and expertise, enabling the city to learn from and contribute to regional smart city initiatives. Through multi-city meetings, the consortium explores technologies like digital twins and artificial intelligence, while also leading pilots to test and advance new systems. Surprise’s commitment to innovation and collaboration through The Connective exemplifies how a city becomes truly smart by listening, learning, and working together. This approach serves as a model for creating successful, connected communities across the Greater Phoenix region and beyond.
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Autor(en)/Author(s): Jeanine Jerkovic
Quelle/Source: Smart Cities World, 27.02.2025
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