Design firm Fender Katsalidis is set to create for sports and recreation what they have done for arts and culture at Mona with a new $200 million masterplan in the Hobart suburb of Glenorchy.
With design excellence and landscape character at the core, the Wilkinsons Point Precinct masterplan, which recently gained rezoning and development approval, will transform a 15-hectare site fronting the Derwent River.
Wilkinsons Point Precinct will offer elite performance facilities and informal recreational opportunities that connect to the surrounding network of open spaces and trails. It also includes mixed-use capabilities such as new waterfront dining, a hotel and sports-focused retail.
Wilkinsons Point Precinct is to be the home of the Tasmania JackJumpers, Tasmania’s new professional basketball team in the Hungry Jack’s NBL. The team will play out of the Derwent Entertainment Centre (DEC), which is undergoing significant upgrades.
Working with landscape architects Oculus and local planners Ireneinc, also project collaborators on Mona, Fender Katsalidis director Nicky Drobis says they are delighted to enact on LK Property Group’s vision to strengthen Tasmania’s position as a sporting state.
“We are pleased to facilitate LK Property Group’s plans to welcome Tasmania’s new NBL team, the Tasmania JackJumpers, with a purposefully designed precinct and landscape driven solution that enhances the river setting,” she says.
“Our masterplan seeks to consistently activate this site, far beyond its current use, and transform the peninsula into a state-of-the-art sports and entertainment precinct that has both social and economic benefit.
“Just as Fender Katsalidis has helped cement Hobart as synonymous with arts and culture through Mona, we hope to elevate the state’s reputation for delivering sport and recreation activities with a dedicated and considered precinct.”
Wilkinsons Point Precinct is slated to encompass indoor recreation facilities, potentially catering to basketball, soccer, gymnastics, rock-climbing, indoor skydiving, indoor skiing and a kids’ play centre.
“While accommodating the state basketball team is vital, the facilities at the precinct are designed for all Hobartians to use and interact with as part of their daily or weekend routines,” adds Drobis.
The approved masterplan creates a covetable space with purposefully designed buildings that link with landscaping – protecting against the natural elements while enhancing its river setting. It also retains as much of the vegetation as possible while enhancing it with generational growth.
Drobis says the aim is to transform this underutilised, ex-industrial site for public benefit with Glenorchy having geographic importance in Tasmania.
“The goal is to cultivate a vibrant and engaging district that prioritises pedestrian movement and activity through designed landscaped areas, integrated infrastructure, and connectivity within the site.
“Being in a prime location, the site needs renewal and investment that effectively responds to a lot of different and complex requirements which we are realising in the new precinct masterplan,” says Drobis.
“The masterplan will deliver something new to the area, improving its functionality and connections for other sites such as Mona and the city, while alleviating congestion along the highway,” adds Drobis.
LK Property Group will commence demolition works inside the DEC within a month and renovation works, starting in 2021, will be completed in time for the commencement of the 2021/22 Hungry Jack’s NBL season.
The DEC will be transformed into a state-of-the-art venue hosting international and Australian artists, shows and performances as well as basketball and other sporting events.