The innovative architectural competition to design a new village centre for the rapidly-growing North Queensland coastal community of Laguna Whitsundays, attracted more than 60 expressions of interest from design firms and consortia worldwide.
A judging panel, chaired by eminent architect, Queensland University of Technology head of the School of Design and Built Environment, Professor John Hockings has now narrowed the field of contenders down to a shortlist of eight groups.
Some 18 different architectural and design firms from around Australia, including some of the biggest names in Australian architecture, are part of these final eight teams (see list below), all with the focus firmly on environmental sustainability.
All shortlisted groups recently attended a special two-day briefing conference at Laguna Whitsundays, to see first-hand the magnificent lagoon-side location of the new village at Laguna, with sweeping views across the Coral Sea out to the stunning Whitsunday islands and Great Barrier Reef.
Laguna Whitsundays, under the ownership of Melbourne businessman, property developer and tourism operator, David Marriner, is being transformed from a single-purpose tourist resort into a new $1 billion coastal community, complete with more than 2500 permanent residents, luxury holiday homes, three championship golf courses, an expanded five star hotel and new convention centre, and its own marina.
The coastal community is also set to become the gateway to the beautiful Whitsunday region, with a new airport being constructed adjacent to the 3200-hectare property to receive both international and domestic flights. It is estimated 400,000 visitors will arrive annually at Laguna airport in the near future.
The design brief given to the final eight selected architectural groups challenged them to create “a new paradigm in sub-tropical village living, that is inclusive of the needs of the Laguna Whitsundays community, the environment and enterprise”.
Environmental engineer, Che Wall, winner of the 2004 Prime Minister’s Environmentalist of the Year award, is advising the jury and the developer on environmental design and infrastructure issues
The architects were also told ecological sustainability is fundamental to the planning, design, construction and operation of the Laguna Village centre.
It will be a pedestrian-only village in a parkland and coastal setting. No vehicles can enter the village other than bicycles and electric-powered golf carts, although there will be car-parking and coach access within 100 metres of most parts of the village.
“We are trying to create a mixed-use village which celebrates the Great Barrier Reef and the Whitsundays, provides an international benchmark in sustainable development and which fosters a vibrant, powerful and sustainable community where there is synergy amongst all users,” said Mr David Marriner.
Other key criteria were that:
• the core of the village be a public swimming lagoon and entertainment area with water features,
• a pedestrian boardwalk running the length of the village connect its various squares and public areas,
• preservation of the existing trees is given planning priority,
• building height is limited to three storeys, and
• all locations are to be designed to capitalise on the village’s magnificent sea, lagoon, golf course, marina and bushland views.
There will be between 40 and 70 buildings within the village, including a pub, small supermarket, cinema, 14 cafes and restaurants, many shops and recreational outlets. Tourist accommodation within the village will include serviced apartments, backpacker accommodation and a family-orientated hotel.
Directly behind the village is Laguna’s latest, and third, championship golf course, designed by golfing legend, Greg Norman and being developed in partnership with Medallist, the golf course and golf frontage home development company jointly owned by Macquarie Bank and Norman’s Great White Shark Enterprises.
Their designs will be submitted to the judging panel by the end of February, with an announcement of the winner, or joint winning teams, made within the same week.
The eight architectural groups shortlisted in the international competition to design Laguna Village are:
• Allen Jack + Cottier, Lahz Nimmo Architects and John Andreas Design (AJC is best known for recent work on the Sydney Olympics 2000 village and the Hunter Valley’s Golden Door resort, while Lahz Nimmo and John Andreas are specialist tropical resort designers).
• Bligh Voller Neild, Addison Associates, Durbach Block, Wendy Lewin Architect and John Wardle Architects. (BVN has a stellar record designing the award-winning NAB headquarters at Dockland, Lake Crackenback village in the Snowy Mountains, the Arthur Boyd Educational centre at Shoalhaven, and the recent refurbishment of Hayman Island)
• Cox Rayner Architects. (Best known work includes the Museum of Tropical Queensland, Townsville; the National Wine Centre, Adelaide; Sanctuary Cover, Gold Coast; Turtle Point Lodge at Laguna Quays; the Yulara Tourist resort, Uluru; and the Eureka Stockade Interpretative Centre, Ballarat).
• Fender Katsalidis Architects. (Besides designing some of Melbourne’s best-known modern residential complexes, such as Republique, recently designed Moonah Links, Mornington Peninsula; Martha Cove, Safety Beach; Kangaroo Bay, Bellerive, Tasmania, and the masterplan for Walker Corporation’s Hope Island Gold Coast development).
• Johnson Pilton Walker. (Best known recent work includes Governor Phillip and Governor Macquarie towers in Sydney (as DCM Sydney) and the award-winning Asian Gallery extension at the Art Gallery of NSW, and all future developments at the Sydney Opera House).
• ML Design, Richard Kirk Architects and Arkhefield. (Best known work by MLD includes Sentosa Island, Singapore; Royal Phuket, Thailand; Peppers Resort, Gold Coast; Empire Resort, Brunei; and the masterplan for Salt, Gold Coast. Arkhefield recently designed Portside, Hamilton, the new gateway to Brisbane).
• Troppo Architects and Stutchbury & Pape. (Troppo Architects is best known for its award winning, tropical eco-housing designs, especially in the NT, where it also designed the Kakadu NP visitors centre and the Darwin City Waterfront. S&P has won awards for its work at the University of Newcastle and Tel Aviv University).
• McGauran Giannini Soon and Donovan Hill. (MGS is behind the concept plan for the new urban village on the site of the former Pentridge Prison, as well as has done extensive work in the Melbourne Docklands area. DH is best known for its work around Pyrmont and Elizabeth Bay, University of Queensland and QUT Kelvin Grove buildings and Stradbroke Island Tourist Park.)