PROJECT: Mandurah Marina
CLIENT: Landcorp
ENGINEERING: Cossill & Webley; TABEC
LANDSCAPE DESIGN: Plan E
SIZE: 9650m²
VALUE: $470,000.00
DURATION: Stage by Stage ???
It wasn’t that long ago that Mandurah was a sleepy little fishing village, popular with retirees and holidaying families. The region has great waterways and is a haven for water-based activities but its gateway – the entrance to the Peel Inlet – was degraded, unattractive and under-used.
Enter Landcorp, Western Australia’s state land development agency, which saw the potential of this fine location just 72 km south of Perth. The project’s hub is a large marina, at the mouth of the Peel Inlet where it meets the Indian Ocean. Around this are gathered a resort, residential and commercial properties including cafes and restaurants, boardwalks and promenades, public open space, an enlarged commercial fishing jetty and a sailing club.
“The pavers have held up well despite the severe marine environment”
Plan E was contracted to provide landscape architectural services to the entire project, including the South Harbour profiled here. “We played a key role in determining hard and soft landscape treatments,” explains Plan E’s John Tuzee. One of the first considerations was to raise the level of some low-lying areas by up to one metre to accommodate storm events.
Clay pavers feature prominently throughout the South Harbour. “Our palette of colours was essentially grey and red. We used a lot of in situ concrete and then used red pavers as feature highlights.” Typical of this are recurring squares of red pavers set in concrete.
“We have also introduced clay pavers into the focal areas, for example in seating areas and congregation spaces.” The red pavers also pick up on the red brick character of Mandurah and tie in with the Venetian feel of the South Harbour’s waterway development. The pavers are laid on a compacted sand base, with narrow, sand-filled gaps. “The pavers have held up well despite the severe marine environment,” says John Tuzee.
The windy, exposed location also demands hardy, salt-tolerant trees and vegetation. Some of the original Norfolk Island pines (araucaria heterophylla) were retained, complemented with sheoaks (allocasuarina fraseriana) and WA peppermints (agonis flexuosa).
“By and large the local reception to the development has been extremely positive,” John Tuzee concludes. Doubtless the improved local amenities and skyrocketing land values will assist in this acceptance.
For more information on ACP Hardstand Solutions capabilities contact Ian Carswell, National Sales & Business Development Manager on 0433 190 436