A design team led by members of Australia’s First Nations has won a competition to design a 1.85ha park in the Barangaroo area of central Sydney.
Harbour Park will offer views of the sea and will contain a 6,000-capacity “event lawn”, public art installations, winding pathways, water features and native planting.
The Akin team is made up of Yerrabingin, Architectus, Jacob Nash, Studio Chris Fox and Flying Fish Blue, with Arup as the engineering consultant.
The team was selected by a jury that included former prime minister Paul Keating alongside design experts.
The park will be located in a 14km continuous harbourside walk from Glebe to Woolloomooloo, and will showcase First Nation design at the headland of the Barangaroo Reserve and the urban environment of Barangaroo South.
Prue Car, the acting premier of New South Wales, said: “Harbour Park is on the traditional lands of the Gadigal, who have been the custodians of the land and waterways for millennia. The park continues the precinct’s commitment to honouring the role of First Nations people, the history of the site and its wider context.
“The new park will be an inclusive, family-friendly place, with experiences for all ages and abilities.”
Christian Hampson, an Akin spokesperson, said: “For us, this is much more than a park – it’s a place to celebrate an enduring culture and to acknowledge and experience our collective past and present while dreaming of our future.”
Further work with the community will now be carried out, finalising the design and starting the procurement process.
