Heart of the Community Daryl Maguire says Oran Park’s integrated leisure centre brings people together in vibrant public spaces, transforming the outer edges of suburban Sydney into a true community
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ith construction now underway a new aquatic and sport centre in Camden. 65 kilometres to the southwest of central Sydney has presented a ‘once-in-ageneration’ opportunity to re-define the heart of the community’s civic precinct. This historic part of NSW, formerly farmland, will be transformed into a new-look community hub for its local populous, which includes many first-time home owners and young families. Warren and Mahoney (W+M), won a highly competitive tender with a unifying ‘whole-of-precinct’ concept to integrate the newly built spaces adjacent to the Civic Centre and other public outdoor spaces. The design was guided by the principles of urban connection with a theme of ‘Sports on Display’ - as it sought to create one active meeting point for the community. W+M’s recent experience designing the benchmark 6 Star Green Star Northcote Aquatic and Recreation Centre in suburban Melbourne, was invaluable for this project, allowing the practice to fold-in critical operational and sustainability insights. A Unique Location The uniqueness of Oran Park’s new development is that it locates three major sports functions right in the town centre alongside the administrative functions of the Civic Centre putting ‘Sport on Display’ and promoting a community focus on being active. The new Oran Park Leisure Centre is intentionally designed to complete the Civic Cluster by connecting seamlessly to the Council Administration Building and Public Library to form a complete hub for locals. To achieve this, the new facility 52 Australasian Leisure Management Issue 149
intentionally frames the Civic Plaza, making this a sheltered and successful place for public gathering and celebration. The Centre includes a new 50 metre indoor pool and family pool for the swimmers; indoor courts for the ball players; and, a gymnasium with group fitness spaces - all within the heart of Camden. A café and gym retail facility will also support the experience and provide a point of connection with others in the community. Advising that high-profile town centre location is what sets this project apart, W+M Principal, Sven Ollmann states “it raises the profile of the Leisure Centre and reflects the priority Camden Council has placed on encouraging physical activity among its constituents. “And, not to leave the importance of local culture behind, we’ll also be incorporating a major piece of art in the landscape, created by Greg Johns.” Ollman says the design of the 50 metre pool and playing courts are fairly pragmatic and the architecture in these spaces reflects that, adding “we’ve used more organic shapes in other parts of the centre to mirror more casual use - such as the Family Pool. By connecting the ‘wet’ and ‘dry’ sports halls internally, the Leisure Centre will also provide opportunities for the different codes to connect. “The design is open to visually connecting the aquatics hall with the ball courts, so it is possible to engage the widest group of people within an interconnected facility and encourage the cross-pollination of users.” Creating Connectivity W+M Associate and Senior Interior Designer, David Hoad, says the W+M team started by defining an attitude for the interior of
