2016 National Landscape Architecture Awards: Award of Excellence for Urban Design

Jury comment

Great landscape architecture often involves embracing elements of the natural environment to stimulate design thinking. When this is applied in an urban design situation, opportunities arise to change the focus of a city. The Parramatta City River Strategy is such a project. It sets out to rediscover the natural aesthetic of the river and, consequentially, to recalibrate the economy of Sydney’s second CBD. It’s a bold project that seeks to draw from the community, to inform decision makers and leaders and to provide a vision for Parramatta. It pulls together transport frameworks, recreational corridors and multi-use architectural spaces, balancing infrastructure with aesthetic outcomes. At the same time, Aboriginal and colonial heritage are recognized and provided for through a collaborative delivery and implementation plan. As summed up by the lord mayor, it is “a plan for a world-class river foreshore that recognizes the importance of the river to the city, improving the city’s connections while protecting and activating the river for people to enjoy.”