Collie Pty Ltd, Melbourne, Australia

Location
The Shire of Wakool is located on the southwestern Riverina floodplains, between the Murray and Murrumbidgee rivers, in southern New South Wales.

Scope
The presentation of design concepts for three community places.

Collie Role
The Shire of Wakool appointed Collie to provide design ideas and concepts for three separate community places - the Wakool Township Gateway, the Moulamein Sculpture Walk and the Murray Downs Community Park.

Key Challenges
To provide design concepts that reflect the aspirations of the particular community but also provide ideas for action.

Download
Wakool Brochure (PDF)

Wakool Community Places

The Wakool Shire which is characterized by flat plains and limited rainfall, has a population of approximately 4360 and encompasses the regional townships of Murray Downs, Tooleybuc, Barham, Moulamein, Koraleigh and Wakool. It is predominantly an agricultural region with the main activities being sheep, wool and cattle, cereal and rice crops, wineyards, citrus, dairy and other food production. Collie was asked to prepare design concepts for three separate community places - the Wakool Township Gateway, the Moulamein Sculpture Walk and the Murray Downs Community Park.

Wakool Township Gateway

Wakool Township is located between Deniliquin and Swan Hill. The design challenge was to create an entrance gateway to the Wakool Township to attract highway travellers to stop and spend time in the town. Collie proposed a Gateway Park at the entrance to the Township with facilities for both highway travellers and the local community. Key design elements included a water feature reminiscent of the irrigation canals and water wheels to be seen in the immediate area, a barbecue area with seating and shelter and parking space. In addition, Collie proposed the installation of a gateway feature consisting of intensive structured plantings along the road reserves on each side of the highway leading up to the main intersection and road access to Wakool Township.

Moulamein Sculpture Walk, Sculpture Garden and Town Walk

Moulamein is the oldest township in the Riverina, the rural region which borders New South Wales and Victoria. Moulamein is rich in heritage sites dating back to early pioneers including the historic courthouse. In the south west of the Moulamein Township is a significant large River Red Gum. The Edward River skirts the southern and western edges of the town centre. The design challenge was to create a link between the 'big tree' and the other key sites in the Moulamein Township and encourage visitors to spend more time in and find sites of interest in the township.

Collie prepared the design concept for a sculpture walk and park in the vicinity of the 'big tree' and Town walk, linking together these sites.

The sculpture walk was designed to follow the riverbank and was proposed to feature locally sourced sculptures within the treed setting. The Town Walk was designed to take in the key sites in the Township and link them to the sculpture walk. Signage was considered to identify the walk, the sculptures, and the cultural and heritage sites.

Murray Downs Community Park

The proposed Murray Downs Community Park is tucked into a bend in the Murray River, located on the south western corner of the Shire. The site comprises approximately four hectares of former farmland sheltered from the Murray River by River Red Gum woodland. The design challenge for this site was to transform the inaccessible, unused farmland into a community park and recreational space for the local community. Collie prepared a design concept which provided for easy access from abutting roads, bicycle and walk pathway. The proposed park included a picnic shelter, seating, a boating access area and locally designed information signage describing the local history and the environmental importance and sensitivity of the River Red Gum woodlands and the Murray River.