National award judges declare boardwalk a winner

Council’s Park Road boardwalk upgrade has been hailed a “shining example of what’s possible when industry, community and professionals collaborate on a shared vision for public benefit”.

Michael Casey, President of the Australian Institute of Horticulture (AIH), added that the project ticked all of the judges’ boxes to take out this year’s AIH Regional Greenspace Award.

“The judging committee all agreed that a project of this calibre, with the involvement of industries and communities working together to green our built environment, echoed why we had introduced these Green Space Awards,” he said.                                                                                               

Mr Casey presented Mayor Tony Wellington with the award at the boardwalk’s official opening today.

Awarded under the AIH annual awards program, the national gong recognised Council’s efforts to retain existing vegetation by designing the new boardwalk around it.

“The project comprehensively covered all the criteria of the Australian Institute of Horticulture’s Regional Greenspace Award,” Mr Casey said.

AIH presents awards in recognition of achievement of excellence in professional horticultural practice.

Council designed the boardwalk upgrade with a community reference group, made up of residents, plus environmental, business and tourism representatives.

“It was always Council’s intention to retain all the trees between Little Cove and the National Park,” the Mayor said. “Peregian-based architect Grant Calder managed to achieve this by incorporating many of the trees into the actual design. Of course quite a few are koala food trees.”

He said it took significant planning to overcome numerous engineering and geo-technical constraints, preserve the environment and ensure the new design preserved visual amenity from the beach.

“The end result is a bigger and better boardwalk, which meets the needs of a wider variety of users. Many millions of people will walk the new boardwalk during its lifetime. This is a real signature project for Noosa and we’re thrilled to see it recognised with this respected national award.”

30 November 2018