Surprise Seeks Artist for $165,000 Police-Substation Artwork

The City of Surprise is seeking an artist for a $165,000 public-art project on the exterior wall of a planned police substation at the northwest corner of 163rd Avenue and West San Ysidro Road.

The wall is expected to measure approximately 154 feet long and 8 feet high. Artist submissions are due by 11:59 p.m. Arizona time on Aug. 31, 2026.

What happens next

Finalists will receive a $1,500 honorarium, along with travel and lodging costs, to develop designs and participate in interviews. No artist or finalist had been selected in the city materials reviewed for this notice.

The city describes the planned substation as part of a public-safety expansion serving a rapidly developing Surprise corridor and improving access to public-safety services. Surprise voters approved $34 million in 2023 bond funding for police and fire expansion, according to the city’s Spring 2026 progress publication.

The notice covers artwork for the substation’s exterior wall; it does not identify the facility’s construction cost. The reviewed materials also do not provide a completion date for the police substation. The next documented step is the Aug. 31 submission deadline, followed by finalist design development and interviews.