WEST WARWICK — Shipwreck Falls, the $150-million resort and indoor water park planned for the West Warwick Business Park, has a new name and management firm, officials announced yesterday.

The venture formerly known as Shipwreck Falls has been renamed the 7th Wave Resort, a nod to the surfing legend that every seventh wave encountered is larger and deeper than the waves before it, said Michael L. Day, president of the Nebraska-based Dial Family Resorts, which is spearheading the project.

The resort will be managed by Marcus Hotels and Resorts, a subsidiary of The Marcus Corporation, of Wisconsin.

“We looked at multiple managers,” said Day, who said he has worked with The Marcus Corporation previously. “I called them up and said, “Listen, let’s do this.’ They have other indoor water park experience and they’re good operators.”

The West Warwick resort will be the third water park under the company’s management and its first in Rhode Island. It owns and operates an indoor water park at the Hilton Milwaukee City Center, and manages Timber Ridge Lodge and Water Park, both in Wisconsin. The company owns eight hotels and manages 12 others.

The local resort will be Dial’s first foray into the indoor water park business. The company builds and manages apartments, hotels, warehouses and shopping centers. It had planned to open a similar indoor water park in Sandusky, Ohio, but backed out of that venture, citing a saturated Midwest market.

Earlier this year, the state House of Representatives approved a 25-year tax increment financing, or TIF, agreement to help finance the project. TIF bonds are used to allow a developer to make improvements to property by essentially holding property taxes at a base level for a set number of years.

The origins of the new name have decidedly land roots, said Day. The name was chosen at a college basketball game.

“We needed a theme and we wanted something fun,” he said. “The crowd started doing the wave and it just wasn’t taking, then, it took on real strong. Dale DeJoy, [one of the project partners] said, ‘It’s like the 7th wave.’ ””

Thus, a name was born.

Day said the name has actually been tossed around since last summer but company leaders haven’t been quick to correct locals who use the original name.

“Names come and go,” Day said. “It could change again, or we could be operating for 10 years before the name changes. That’s the joy of the entertainment business.”

The Hawaiian and surfer-themed resort will include 409 rooms, a 75,000-square-foot indoor water park, and 12,000 square feet of meeting space. A family dinner theater, a themed restaurant, lounges, spa, stores and arcade will also find homes on site.

Day said the company is working with a prospective lender and hopes to break ground this summer. If construction moves forward as planned, the resort will open in January 2010.

tbuford@projo.com